Links 15/12/2023: Autonomous Systems Fatigue and TikTok Ban Upheld
Contents
- Leftovers
- Science
- Education
- Hardware
- Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
- Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Security
- Defence/Aggression
- Environment
- Finance
- AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
- Censorship/Free Speech
- Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
- Civil Rights/Policing
- Internet Policy/Net Neutrality Monopolies/Monopsonies
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Leftovers
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Digital Music News ☛ Singer-Guitarist Jeffrey Foskett of the Beach Boys Dies at 67
Singer-guitarist Jeffrey Foskett has died at age 67 after a long battle with thyroid cancer. He was instrumental in the Beach Boys revival in the ‘90s with Brian Wilson. Wilson confirmed the news on Facebook, telling friends and fans, “I’m so heartbroken that my dear friend Jeff Foskett has passed.
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NL Times ☛ “Put the fun between your legs!” named the worst brand slogan of 2023
The jury from the SlechteSlogans.nl platform created a shortlist of 10 contenders from which the public could choose their favorite, or least favorite. A total of 5,820 voters cast 8,987 votes in December. People who spot the odd marketing phrases have sent about 2,500 slogans to the platform since it started about a dozen years ago. According to the platform, bad slogans are often somewhat raunchy, and make heavy use of puns.
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The Nation ☛ I Finally Left Xitter Because of Alex Jones
But then Elmo brought in liar and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who spent years torturing the surviving parents of Sandy Hook by claiming that the school massacre was an invention of “crisis actors,” and that was too much for me. (Elmo hosted Jones along with sex-trafficking misogynist Andrew Tate and the worst GOP presidential candidate ever—including Donald Trump—Vivek Ramaswamy, on a Twitter Spaces platform Sunday night.) Why was Jones the final straw? I have very few breaking points, but the Sandy Hook massacre, in 2012, broke me. As the 10th anniversary of that horrific day approached, I was blessed to work through those memories with a surviving parent last year. I won’t link to the article that resulted—I’ll share it on Threads and Bluesky, later—because I don’t want to link her to my decision, which I made too late, to leave what was once a thriving digital public square, now irredeemably corrupted by Musk. Or to this conversation. I apologize. You know who you are.
But on the 11th anniversary of Sandy Hook, I won’t share any space with sadist carnival barker Alex Jones.
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Futurism ☛ Twitter Apparently Lost $1.5 Billion in Ad Revenue as Elon Musk Flailed
According to Bloomberg's insider sources, the company is projected to bring in about $2.5 billion in ad revenue for this year — a "significant slump" compared to the past two years.
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India Times ☛ Elon Musk's X receives Pennsylvania money license in push toward payment features
The approval by Pennsylvania, which occurred on Monday according to a public licensing database, has not been previously reported. It grants X the ability to facilitate money transfers and paves the way for the company to allow users to send money to one another, similar to PayPal's Venmo.
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Gizmodo ☛ Twitter Hasn't Been 'Enshittified.' It Always Sucked.
For the most part, these changes have not gone over well. Recent reports show that the platform has lost as much as 13 percent of its daily active users during the past year, and X is also thought to have lost billions (maybe tens of billions) in value—meaning it may now only be worth a fraction of what Elon originally paid for it. Many users have complained of a general degradation of feed and content quality, and Musk’s changes—many of which have been laughably bizarre—have rightfully suffered from a maelstrom of criticism.
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Thorsten Ball ☛ Leaving Sourcegraph
Why am I leaving? Over the past few months I realised that there’s still many, many things that I want to learn as an engineer. So many things to see and do until I can lean back and say that I’ve squeezed every last bit of programming out of myself. And the best way to do that, in my experience, is to go and do something new, to get out from the shallow end of the pool, to which I’ve drifted slowly over said 4.5 years, run to the other side and jump back into the deep end.
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Science
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Axios ☛ Sun's strongest solar flare in years knocks out radio frequencies
NOAA scientists determined Thursday's X-class flare as not only the largest of the current Solar Cycle 25, but also the biggest since September 2017.
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Science Alert ☛ Entropy Could Be The Secret to Alien Worlds Being Habitable
Scientist Luigi Petraccone, a chemistry researcher at the University of Naples in Italy, looked at planetary entropy. He's interested in how scientists select planets that could be habitable. He released a paper that examines something called "planetary entropy production" (PEP). Here's how it works.
A habitable world needs a biosphere with stuff living inside it. All life grows and expands, using the available water, warmth, and food resources. As it turns out, entropy plays out inside a world's biosphere. And, it needs a relatively high PEP.
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Science Alert ☛ Man Uses Strange Rock as Doorstop For Decades. It Was Worth a Fortune.
The man went on to say that in the 1930s he and his father had seen the meteorite shoot down at night onto their property, "and it made a heck of a noise when it hit".
The next morning, the pair found the crater left by the object, and dug the meteorite out of the newly formed ditch. It was still warm, they said.
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Education
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The Nation ☛ How Colleges Became Recruitment Hubs for the Gen-Z Right
An anonymous post appeared in late September on Reddit’s “QAnonCasualties” forum, an online space designed to support those desperate to extricate loved ones from the all-consuming grip of conspiracy theories. “I think my brother is a white supremacist and I don’t know what to do,” a 17-year-old posted. She went on that she became concerned after her 13-year old brother started saying things like “gay people are disgusting.” This article first appeared in In These Times magazine’s special issue on the spread of the far right.
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Hardware
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Tom's Hardware ☛ I try all the latest tech as editor-in-chief of Tom's Hardware -- here's what's on my holiday wish list
To help you shop for tech-obsessed loved ones, I present the wish list I'm sharing with my own family. Some items on this list reflect my tastes and individual needs, but they should give you an idea of what to buy the people in your life. Most of these cost less than $50.
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Unicorn Media ☛ Overclocking AMD Blows a Fuse
Are you one of those people who regularly overclocks your CPUs and GPUs to get more bang for your bucks? I don’t, mainly because I couldn’t be bothered, but it’s pretty much common knowledge that lots and lots and lots of gamers do, mainly to give them something of a competitive edge (kinda like professional atheletes taking steroids).
Unlike steroid use, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with overclocking your machine (I’m pretty sure it’s not even against the rules when playing games), but you do need to know that if you don’t know what your doing you run the risk of damaging your hardware. Along the same line, if you do damage your silicon in the process, the damage won’t be covered by the warranties from most if not all chipmakers.
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Hackaday ☛ It’s A Microphone And A Spring Reverb All In One
We’re so used to reverb effects being simply another software plugin that it’s easy to forget the electromechanical roots of the effect. Decades ago, a reverb would have been a metal spring fed at one end with a speaker and attached at the other to a microphone. You may not see them often in the 2020s, which is probably why [Ham-made] has produced one. It’s not the type with a speaker providing the sound, though. Instead, this is a microphone in its own right with a built-in spring line.
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Hackaday ☛ Laser Cut Zither Instrument Kicks It Old World Style
Learning to play an instrument takes a certain level of dedication — and you can add another layer of dedication on top of that when it’s an instrument not found at your local Guitar Center. But it’s an entirely new level of dedication when someone crafts the instrument from scratch. If you’re looking for an example, check out this custom wooden zither [Nicolas Bras] built from laser cut parts.
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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Omicron Limited ☛ Black truffle production booms in Spain
Production of "tuber melanosporum", the scientific name for black truffles, has soared in recent years in Spain, which is now the world's leading producer of the delicacy.
Often called "black diamonds", the truffles can fetch up to 1,500 euros ($1,600) per kilogram.
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Science Alert ☛ Your Ancient Neanderthal DNA Could Be Why You're an Early Riser
Our ancestors only started facing this type of weather about 50,000 to 60,000 years ago, which is when there was a big wave of migration into Europe. So it would make sense that these genetic mutations from Neanderthals and Denisovans would give some of us a leg up in the cold Eurasian winter months.
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Federal News Network ☛ Military struggles to bring Gen Z into the armed forces
In addition, over 77% of today’s eligible population doesn’t qualify for military service without some kind of a waiver, a factor that is greatly contributing to the shrinking recruitment pool.
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University of Michigan ☛ Teen drug use remains below pre-pandemic levels
The percentage of teenagers reporting they used any illicit substances in 2023 held steady below the pre-pandemic levels reported in 2020, according to the Monitoring the Future survey.
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Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
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Gizmodo ☛ Tesla Says It's Not Fraud, It's Free Speech
Teslas are not fully autonomous vehicles yet, but the company allegedly advertised them as though they are. California’s DMV accused Tesla of fraud for saying its vehicles had “full self-driving capability,” among other false claims from the car company. Tesla published disclaimers saying current models “require active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous” on its website. In court documents recently made public, Tesla is making the argument this court case should be thrown out altogether because its claims are protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution.
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The Register UK ☛ Damn, even the Pope thinks AI and autonomous weapons need reining in
"We cannot presume a priori that its development will make a beneficial contribution to the future of humanity and to peace among peoples," he pontificated. "That positive outcome will only be achieved if we show ourselves capable of acting responsibly and respect such fundamental human values as 'inclusion, transparency, security, equity, privacy and reliability'."
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International Business Times ☛ Pope Francis Joins Calls For Treaty To Regulate Artificial Intelligence
The Pope's comments were part of his annual message for the World Day of Peace, which the Catholic Church celebrates at the start of the New Year.
The Vatican released the text of the message this morning.
Earlier this year, Pope Francis personally experienced the power of AI technology, when he became the subject of an internet trend after an AI-generated image of him wearing a luxury white puffer jacket went viral - a demonstration of the growing potential of deepfakes and AI-generated images.
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MIT Technology Review ☛ Now we know what OpenAI’s superalignment team has been up to
For Aschenbrenner and others at the company, models with human-like abilities are just around the corner. “But it won’t stop there,” he says. “We’re going to have superhuman models, models that are much smarter than us. And that presents fundamental new technical challenges.”
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Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications
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Motor Trend Group LLC ☛ GM Says It's Ditching Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for Your Safety
GM's announcement earlier this year that it would begin phasing out Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity on its new EVs and, eventually, all of its future products went over very poorly, to say the least. Those phone-mirroring programs are hugely popular among both new and used car buyers, making GM's announcement difficult to understand. Now, the company has explained a bit more about its thinking to MotorTrend.
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Gizmodo ☛ GM Is Removing Apple CarPlay and Android Auto From Its Future Cars Over Safety Concerns
The decision to do so obviously resulted in public backlash. Consumers are way too accustomed to Apple CarPlay to change to an entirely new interface. This change would mean consumers can no longer mirror their phones to their car’s display. Instead, they’d have to manually upload an entire database to their car’s infotainment system, which is a bit of an ask.
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Security
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Privacy/Surveillance
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Security Week ☛ CISA Seeks Public Opinion on Surveillance Giant Google Workspace Secure Configuration Baselines
CISA is asking for public opinion on SCuBA secure configuration baselines for nine Surveillance Giant Google Workspace services.
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Bruce Schneier ☛ Surveillance by the US Postal Service
This is not about mass surveillance of mail, this is about the sorts of targeted surveillance the US Postal Inspection Service uses to catch mail thieves:
To track down an alleged mail thief, a US postal inspector used license plate reader technology, GPS data collected by a rental car company, and, most damning of all, hid a camera inside one of the targeted blue post boxes which captured the suspect’s full face as they allegedly helped themselves to swathes of peoples’ mail.
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Reason ☛ Did Surveillance Giant Google Just Defeat Every Geofence Warrant?
Code is law, they say.
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OpenRightsGroup ☛ Government powers overdrawn
Whether you are a pensioner or a parent, unemployed or living with a disability, you may be one of the millions of people who receive benefits from the State. Like the NHS, the welfare state is a safety net when times get tough; no one should be ashamed of receiving benefits.
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New York Times ☛ How Meta’s New Face Camera Heralds a New Age of Surveillance
Meta’s $300 smart glasses look cool but lack a killer app, and they offer a glimpse into a future with even less privacy and more distraction.
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Medevel ☛ Etebase simplifies building encrypted apps for GDPR, HIPAA, CCPA, and FERPA compliance.
Etebase is a secure, end-to-end encrypted, and privacy-respecting sync solution for contacts, calendars, tasks, and notes. It is easy to use, open source, and seamlessly integrates with existing apps.
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Medevel ☛ CyberDragon Browser is a Privacy-focused Portable Browser
CyberDragon Browser is a privacy-enhanced and portable browser that features a tracker blocker to prevent over 6000 trackers from following your browsing habits.
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Common Dreams ☛ ACLU Slams Congress for NDAA Vote Extending Mass Surveillance Program with No Reforms
“It’s incredibly disheartening that Congress decided to extend an easily-abused law with zero of the reforms needed to protect all of our privacy. As long as Section 702 is being used by the government to spy on Americans without a warrant, we will continue to fight this unconstitutional law and work with Congress to strengthen our Fourth Amendment protections against government surveillance.”
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The Register UK ☛ Four more months of Section 702 snooping slipped into $890B US defense budget bill
On Thursday, the US House of Representatives voted 310 to 118 to approve the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), following the US Senate's passage by a 87 to 13 vote on Wednesday.
It's a massive piece of legislation that will fund among other things pay raises for soldiers, and new ships, aircraft, and weapons. The act also authorizes additional support for Ukraine. President Biden is expected to sign it into law.
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[Repeat] NYOB ☛ GDPR complaint against X (Twitter) over illegal micro-targeting for chat control ads
Today, noyb filed a complaint against X (Twitter) for unlawfully using the political views and religious beliefs of its users for targeted advertising. The company used this specially protected data to determine whether people should or should not see an ad campaign by the EU Commission’s Directorate General for Migration and Home Affairs, which tried to ralley support for the proposed “chat control” in the Netherlands. In November, this unlawful use of micro-targeting already prompted noyb to file a complaint against the EU Commission itself. Now, noyb follows up with a complaint against X. By enabling this practice in the first place, the company violated both the GDPR and the DSA.
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The Register UK ☛ Privacy crusaders accuse X of ad-targeting that flouts EU rules
Austria-based noyb (none of your business) alleges that the EU Home Affairs account in September paid X to promote a post in the Netherlands about the necessity of chat control legislation (which would make it permissible to scan devices and messages – even encrypted ones – for child abuse material.) Crucially, noyb accuses it of targeting users based on their political views and religious beliefs in order to do so.
If true, it would mean X isn't only violating its own targeted advertising rules, but the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) as well, noyb contends.
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CNBC ☛ Musk's X hit with complaint alleging platform broke Europe's strict privacy laws
The complaint, lodged Thursday by Austrian Max Schrems' campaign group Noyb with the Dutch data protection authority, alleges that X unlawfully used people's political views and religious beliefs to target them with ads.
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[Old] Michael Geist ☛ Age Verification Requirements for Twitter or Website Blocking for Reddit?: My Appearance on Bill S-210 at the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs
Bill C-11, the government’s online streaming bill, is rightly garnering increasing attention, but there is a private member’s Senate bill that should also be on the radar screen. Bill S-210, a follow-up to S-203, is a bill that purports to restrict underage access to sexually explicit material. Sponsored by Senator Miville-Dechêne, a former CBC journalist appointed to the Senate in 2018, the bill would require age verification requirements for sites (likely backed by face recognition technologies) and mandated website blocking for sites that fail to comply with the verification requirements.
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Light Blue Touchpaper ☛ Grasping at straw
One winner is the NCA, which apparently now has 200 staff tracing people associated with alarms raised automatically by Big Tech’s content surveillance, while the losers include Britain’s 43 local police forces. If 80% of the people arrested as a result of Mr Biggar’s activities don’t even merit any jail time, then my conclusion is that the Treasury should cut his headcount by at least 160, and give each Chief Constable an extra 3-4 officers instead. Frontline cops agree that too much effort goes into image offences and not enough into the more serious contact crimes.
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Unicorn Media ☛ Will Geofence Warrants Soon Be a Thing of the Past? Maybe, but Don’t Hold Your Breath
In a blog published on Electronic Frontier Foundation’s website on Wednesday, EFF’s general counsel Jennifer Lynch gives us the good news that Google is so drastically changing the methods it uses to collect user location data that it just might put the kibosh on law enforcement’s use of geofence warrants going forward — but suggests that we perhaps shouldn’t hold our collective breaths as we wait for that to happen.
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Confidentiality
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The Register UK ☛ The truth about Dropbox opening up your files to AI – and the loss of trust in tech
Artist Karla Ortiz and celeb Justine Bateman, who like Vogels have significant social media followings, each publicly condemned Dropbox for seemingly automatically, by default, allowing outside AI outfits to drill into people's documents.
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Simon Willison ☛ The AI trust crisis
The key issue here is that people are worried that their private files on Dropbox are being passed to OpenAI to use as training data for their models—a claim that is strenuously denied by Dropbox.
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Defence/Aggression
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New York Times ☛ TikTok Quietly Changes User Terms Amid Growing Legal Scrutiny
Parents, schools and even attorneys general have increasingly been raising concerns about how TikTok may be hooking children to the app and serving them inappropriate content. But some lawyers say bringing legal action against the company could be more difficult after TikTok quietly changed its terms of service this summer.
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Digital Music News ☛ TikTok Crosses $10 Billion in Consumer Spending — First Non-Gaming App to Cross This Threshold
That spending comes from TikTok’s in-app purchase of “coins,” which are used to buy gifts for influencers on the platform. Gifts can be cashed out, and reward creators for their content, with TikTok keeping 50% of the payout.
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Digital Music News ☛ TikTok ‘Add to Music App’ Feature Expands to 19 Additional Countries in South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East
Notwithstanding the ample government scrutiny that TikTok is facing, including several bans, multimillion-dollar fines, and lawsuits concerning the app’s alleged harmful impact upon children and teens, the popular ByteDance-owned platform has during 2023 inked a number of agreements in and around the music sphere.
Among these pacts are tie-ups with Disney, Live Nation/Ticketmaster, DistroKid, Rotana Music, and, perhaps most notably, Warner Music Group. Meanwhile, aside from the expansion of its namesake standalone streaming service, TikTok has added artist accounts, started organizing in-person concerts, and doubled down on its talent-discovery and -promotion efforts on the year.
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US News And World Report ☛ Meta, TikTok Report Jump in Malaysia Govt Requests to Remove Content in 2023
The government has denied allegations of stifling dissent online, saying it wanted to curb provocative posts that touch on race, religion and royalty.
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India Times ☛ Meta, TikTok report jump in Malaysia govt requests to remove content in 2023
Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's administration, which came to power in November 2022 on a reformist platform, has faced accusations of backpedaling on its promises to protect freedom of speech amid increased scrutiny of online content in recent months.
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El País ☛ Denmark and Germany announce arrests of terror suspects, including suspected Hamas members
Denmark and Germany announced Thursday arrests of several terror suspects, including alleged Hamas members suspected of plotting attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions in Europe over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
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Deutsche Welle ☛ Denmark says 4 arrested over suspected terror plot
Three suspects were arrested in Denmark, and a fourth was arrested in the Netherlands.
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CBC ☛ Protect NATO from Donald Trump? The U.S. Congress just passed that into law
It says no president shall suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw from NATO without either an act of Congress or the approval of two-thirds of the U.S. Senate.
It also says a president must notify Congress 180 days before undertaking a withdrawal plan, among other conditions spelled out in the bill.
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The Strategist ☛ The threat spectrum
Planet A This year’s UN climate conference, COP28, was the first to include a day of programming dedicated to the theme of health, relief, recovery and peace.
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New York Times ☛ Friday Briefing: U.S. Urges Israel to Scale Back Its War
Plus, why you might be an early riser.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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Meduza ☛ To build or not to build Locals push back against new ‘super prison’ plans in Russia’s Far East — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ In first, Russia revokes citizenship of two men for drug charges — Meduza
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AntiWar ☛ Bad Advice: Ukraine Then and Now
David Arakhamiya’s recent interview enhances our understanding of the diplomatic course of the war in Ukraine in two crucial ways. Despite the political West’s insistence that Vladimir Putin had more expansive goals for invading Ukraine, Arakhamiya says that Moscow would have traded peace for a Ukrainian promise not to join NATO.
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France24 ☛ Putin raises doubts Russians will participate as neutrals at Paris Olympics
Russian President Vladimir Putin questioned the International Olympic Committee rules mandating Russian athletes compete at the Paris Olympics as neutrals.
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France24 ☛ Putin vows 'victory' in Ukraine during annual press conference
Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged "victory" in Ukraine on Thursday as he staged an upbeat press conference a week after announcing plans to stay in the Kremlin until at least 2030.
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RFA ☛ Rocket men: Kim and Putin fire up their alliance
An isolated Russia moves closer to North Korea in what critics view as a sign of desperation.
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RFERL ☛ Lawmakers Urge Putin To Provide Imprisoned Moscow City Council Member With Medical Assistance
More than 70 regional lawmakers across Russia have urged President Vladimir Putin and the presidential Council on Human Rights to secure medical assistance for Moscow municipal lawmaker Aleksei Gorinov, who was handed a seven-year prison term in July.
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New Yorker ☛ A Congressional Christmas Gift to Putin
Biden’s signature support for Ukraine goes from “as long as it takes” to “as long as we can.”
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New York Times ☛ Putin Suggests He Has a Winning Hand in His War in Ukraine
The Russian leader, in his annual news conference, said he was open to peace talks but showed no hint of compromise. “Peace will come when we achieve our goals,” he said.
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Meduza ☛ ‘The American side must listen to us’: Vladimir Putin on negotiations over the release of WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich — Meduza
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New York Times ☛ Takeaways From Putin’s Address on the Ukraine War and More
The Russian leader suggested that Western support for Ukraine was drying up and also gave his first comments about Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter detained in Russia.
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European Commission ☛ Commissioner Johansson's speech at the Global Refugee Forum on Ukraine refugee response
European Commission Speech Geneva, 14 Dec 2023 We are here on this extremely important topic.
The European Union is right now hosting 4.1 million Ukrainians.
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Latvia ☛ Donate your bottle cap, buy drone for Ukraine
What can be simpler than unscrewing a plastic cap on a bottle and donating it to charity? Such an opportunity is offered by the society “Your Friends” (Tavi draugi), Latvian Television reported on December 15.
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Latvia ☛ Latvian PM: Starting talks on Ukraine joining EU a historic moment
On Thursday, December 14, the European Council decided to start accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova. Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa (New Unity) described the decision of EU leaders as a historic moment for the European Union, Ukraine and also Latvia.
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Federal News Network ☛ How long can U.S. weapons and ammunition stockpile last?
The war in Ukraine, and to some extent Israel, have drained away U.S. weapons and ammunition stockpiles. Numerous studies have cited a shortage of shells, missiles and launch platforms, as well as whether the industrial supply chain and the military's own organic supply chain have the capacity to sustain the demand. For one informed view, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin talked with Al Abramson, the Vice President of Strategic Engagement with the National Armaments Consortium and a retired U.S. Army brigadier general.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Historic breakthrough for Ukraine as EU agrees to begin membership talks
European leaders have agreed to officially start EU membership talks with Ukraine in a morale-boosting victory for Ukrainians as they defend their country against Russia’s ongoing invasion, writes Peter Dickinson.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Russia and China are part of the same problem for the United States
China and Russia act together as an autocratic axis to endanger the United States and its democratic allies, writes Glenn Chafetz. Any attempt to appease Russia in Ukraine would only benefit China and weaken the US.
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Meduza ☛ Hungary blocks $55 billion E.U. aid package for Ukraine — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ E.U. decides to open accession negotiations with Ukraine — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Video shows Russian soldiers may have used Ukrainian POWs as human shields — Meduza
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France24 ☛ Hungary blocks 50 billion euros in EU aid for Ukraine following approval of membership talks
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday blocked 50 billion euros in EU aid for Ukraine, after leaders side-stepped his opposition to agree to open talks with Kyiv on joining the bloc.
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France24 ☛ Zelensky hails 'victory for Ukraine' as EU agrees to open accession talks
The European Union decided Thursday to open accession negotiations with Ukraine, a stunning reversal for a country at war that had struggled to find the necessary backing for its membership aspirations and long faced opposition from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
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France24 ☛ Japan expands sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine
Japan announced expanded sanctions on Friday over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, revealing dozens of newly sanctioned firms and other organisations, including export bans against some outside Russia and its ally Belarus.
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LRT ☛ Start of Ukraine EU accession talks is ‘new page’ in history, says Lithuanian president
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda hailed EU leaders’ decision on Thursday to start membership talks with Ukraine as “a new page” in history.
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RFERL ☛ Slovak Truckers End Blockade At Ukraine Border Crossing
Slovak truckers have ended a blockade of the sole road freight border crossing with Ukraine, a Slovak hauliers' association and Ukraine's state border service said on December 15.
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RFERL ☛ EU Summit Moves On From Historic Ukraine Decision, As Orban Leans Into Role Of Spoiler
EU leaders are gathering in Brussels on December 15 for day two of a key summit where a breakthrough was reached to open membership talks with Ukraine and Moldova but a crucial 50-billion-euro ($54 billion) aid package for Kyiv was blocked by member Hungary.
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RFERL ☛ Ukrainian Air Force Says Drone Attacks Continue Into Evening After Widespread Daytime Alerts
Russian troops launched attack drones over Ukraine on the evening of December 14, the Ukrainian Air Force said, prompting further air alerts in Odesa, Mykolayiv, Kherson, and several other regions.
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RFERL ☛ U.S. Congress Departs Without Deal On Ukraine Aid, But Senate Plans To Work Next Week
U.S. lawmakers began departing Washington on December 14 without a deal to send more military aid to Ukraine, even as President Joe Biden's administration raced to negotiate with Senate Republicans who are demanding changes to U.S. border security policy.
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The Straits Times ☛ Japan expands sanctions over Russia’s Ukraine invasion
With the additions, Japan has now imposed an export ban on 494 Russian organisations.
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New York Times ☛ Ukraine Military Recruiters Use Harsh Tactics to Fill Ranks
Ukrainian men are reporting incidents of wrongful draft notices, unprofessional medical commissions and coercive mobilization tactics.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine Declares Third Air Raid Alert On The Same Day Amid Reports Of Explosions In Kyiv Region
A large-scale air alert was announced across Ukraine for the third time on December 14 amid reports of explosions near the capital, Kyiv.
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RFERL ☛ Prosecutor Seeks 10 Years In Prison In Absentia For Film Director Over His Anti-War Stance
A prosecutor on December 14 asked a court in Moscow to sentence self-exiled film director Ivan Vyrypayev to 10 years in prison on charges of "discrediting Russian armed forces" involved in Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
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RFERL ☛ EU Agrees To Open Membership Negotiations With Ukraine And Moldova
European Council President Charles Michel has announced that EU leaders have agreed to launch membership talks with Ukraine, a decision that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed as a "victory" for his country and Europe.
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New York Times ☛ Hungary Blocks E.U. Aid for Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine welcomed the breakthrough as talks on joining the bloc officially opened. Securing more financial aid will have to wait.
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New York Times ☛ E.U. Accession Talks Lift Morale in Ukraine
The E.U.’s willingness to open accession talks will lift morale, but the more immediate issue of financial support from allies for the war is cloudy.
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Meduza ☛ Father of Russian eighth-grader who opened fire on classmates released from pre-trial detention — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Russian Court Releases Father Whose Daughter Killed Classmate And Herself
The Bryansk regional court in Russia on December 15 ruled to release Dmitry Afanaskin from pretrial detention five days after he was detained on a charge of negligently keeping a firearm after his 14-year-old daughter shot a classmate and herself dead at school last week with his shotgun.
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RFERL ☛ Navalny's Allies Say Authorities Continue To Refuse To Reveal His Whereabouts
A lawyer for imprisoned Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny says prison officials told a court in Vladimir, some 200 kilometers east of Moscow, on December 15 Navalny had left the IK-6 facility in the region, but they did not say where he was taken.
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The Straits Times ☛ Whereabouts of Russia's Navalny still unknown: Ally
Officials from Russia's prison authority told a court on Friday that jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was no longer in the penal colony where he had been serving his sentence but they did not explain where he had gone, an ally said.
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Meduza ☛ Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service says Navalny transferred to prison “outside of Vladimir region” — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Ex-FBI Counterintelligence Official Sentenced To Prison For Aiding Russian Oligarch
A former top FBI counterintelligence official was ordered on December 14 to spend over four years in prison for violating sanctions against Russia by going to work for a Russian oligarch seeking dirt on a wealthy rival after he finished his government career.
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RFERL ☛ Finland Will Again Shut Russian Border Over Asylum Seekers, Minister Says
Finland will again shut its entire border with Russia to stop an influx of asylum seekers, Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said on December 14, just hours after Finland ended a two-week closure of all roads between the two countries.
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New York Times ☛ Finland Closes Border With Russia Again
The country accused Russia of resuming an effort to funnel mostly African and Middle Eastern migrants into Finland in an effort to destabilize it.
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Meduza ☛ Finland to close both border crossings with Russia that it reopened today — Meduza
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YLE ☛ Finland announces new Russian border closure
Over 70 asylum seekers arrived at the two re-opened checkpoints during Thursday, prompting the Finnish government to shut the entire border for a second time.
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New York Times ☛ German Spy Official Goes on Trial Accused of Selling Secrets to Russia
The trial, held under stringent security conditions and expected to last months, caps one of the gravest espionage scandals in recent German history.
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Marcy Wheeler ☛ Garanimals in a SCIF: David Weiss’ Attempt to Sheep Dip Bill Barr’s Hunter Biden Prosecution
Hunter Biden's argument that he couldn't be charged with gun crimes because the diversion agreement remains, or remained, binding is his best shot for avoiding that prosecution. It also provides reason to believe that David Weiss used Bill Barr's laundered Russian dirt to reopen the Hunter Biden investigation.
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LRT ☛ Belarusians in Lithuania are not getting residence permits – Tsikhanouskaya
Around 2,000 Belarusians in Lithuania have not had their temporary residence permits renewed, which is causing great concern for the Belarusian expat community, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya says.
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Meduza ☛ These are the new criminal liabilities and steeper penalties the Russian authorities introduced in 2023 to keep the Kremlin’s wartime repressions rolling — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Two brothers stripped of Russian citizenship for evading military registration — Meduza
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Environment
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NL Times ☛ Mayor: Extinction Rebellion blockade of A10 ring road will completely disrupt Amsterdam
Last month, the protest group announced the blockade. It was organized in such a way as to be staged near the former ING headquarters on the Zuidas in Amsterdam. The action group has demanded that the bank stop all financing and financial services provided to the fossil fuel sector. The bank has not had a physical presence in the unusually-shaped building in about a decade, though ING still owns the property.
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Breach Media ☛ Loopholes and lobbyists—what went down at the UN climate summit
On this episode, we’ll be hearing a dispatch from Indigenous activist Eriel Deranger from the United Nations climate negotiations. At the conclusion of the two-week long negotiations, known by their shorthand COP (Conference of Parties), mainstream media headlines are describing it as ‘historic.’ But the agreement that’s been reached is loophole ridden, without teeth, and without any explicit commitment to phase out the fossil fuels that are driving the climate crisis.
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Science Alert ☛ West Antarctica Glacier's Retreat Unstoppable: Study Says Tipping Point Crossed
Collapse could raise sea levels by meters.
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Energy/Transportation
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Hackaday ☛ Charging While Driving Now Possible In Michigan
Heavy vehicles like semi trucks pose a bigger challenge in electrifying the transportation fleet than smaller, more aerodynamic passenger cars. Michigan now has the first public in-road charging system in the United States to help alleviate this concern. [via Electrek]
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Hackaday ☛ Sneakernet Power Transmission
Power outages in the face of natural disasters or more mundane grid failures can range from a mild inconvenience to a matter of life or death if you depend on electrical medical equipment. [Shareable] and [People Power Battery Collective] have partnered to develop a toolkit for communities looking to share power with each other in these situations.
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DeSmog ☛ EPA Requirements for Monitoring Buried Carbon Emissions Are Too Weak: New Report
The nation’s top environmental regulator doesn’t have sufficient rules to monitor leaks from carbon capture projects, according to an environmental watchdog’s new report.
The analysis of Environmental Protection Agency-approved monitoring, reporting, and verification plans for carbon capture projects, released today by the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), found that the EPA’s current regulations fail to address the ways that carbon dioxide could leak back into the atmosphere after it’s been injected underground.
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DeSmog ☛ Fossil Fuels Can Go Extinct — If We Take our Climate Anxieties Seriously
The best climate news of 2023 hasn’t just just come out of closed-door diplomatic meetings. It’s been been happening in communities across the world, where climate anxiety is becoming a hot topic of mainstream conversation*. Anxiety, depression and grief around climate change aren’t pathological: They are reasonable, natural reactions to a fearsome threat that has only grown stronger since the last “breakthrough” at Paris in 2015. These feelings have been shared by the most informed people, climate scientists, for years. And while a mental health crisis might not sound like good news, this one has the potential to do what 28 Conferences of the Parties, or COPs, (including Paris or, frankly, COP28 in the United Arab Emirates) have not: spark real mobilisation in response to the climate threat.
True public engagement with climate anxiety entails facing up to its causes –– including the disturbing lack of any credible plan for mitigation of — or adaptation to — climate breakdown. To face these facts is to understand that COPs will continue to badly fail us until a popular mobilisation ends the ‘outsourcing’ of our future to huge meetings of powerless diplomats. Such a mobilisation would help millions to use their nervous energy to make a difference rather than feeling overwhelmed. To catalyse such a mobilisation is the founding vision of the Climate Majority Project, and as our new campaign explores, paying attention to our climate anxiety is a prerequisite for this collective action.
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Axios ☛ Where public transit is recovering — and where it's not
Why it matters: Public transit — whether in the form of subway systems, buses, light rail or even cable cars — is key to cities' broader health and vibrancy.
It makes for cleaner, greener cities, opens up possibilities for those who can't afford a car, and frees up parking lots to be turned into housing, green space and more.
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Copenhagen Post ☛ S-Train Etiquette
New York has the Subway, London has the Underground, we have the S-Train, and we should be proud of it. (I know there’s the metro, but that’s for another day).
So with this in mind, I would like to impart a few simple rules that I’ve picked up to help us all enjoy our journeys.
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Futurism ☛ A Bitcoin Miner Is Buying Four Entire Power Plants
The sheer, astonishing waste.
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DeSmog ☛ Youth Climate Lawsuit Against Canadian Climate Policy Can Go to Trial, Court Rules
A federal appeals court in Canada breathed new life into a youth-led constitutional climate lawsuit against the Canadian government, allowing it to proceed towards trial on a narrower scope and partially reversing the trial court’s ruling that the entire case should be tossed.
In its opinion issued on December 13, Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal determined that one part of the legal claims asserted in the case was viable and that a trial would help assess whether that claim violates the constitution. Initially filed in 2019 by 15 young Canadians, La Rose v. His Majesty the King alleges Canada’s policies and actions that perpetuate fossil fuels and worsen the climate crisis amount to violations of youths’ fundamental rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The case’s claims under Section 7 of the Charter, pertaining to the rights to life, liberty, and security of the person, should be addressed given the grave impacts of the climate crisis, the appeals court determined.
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DeSmog ☛ The Livestock Industry’s “Climate Neutral” Claims Are Too Good To Be True
Recent findings from some peer-reviewed academic papers in agricultural journals sound like fodder for optimism: The United States cattle industry has helped to cool the climate almost every year since 1986. European dairy goats and sheep have caused no additional warming since 1990. Australian sheep meat is a “climate-neutral” product.
But these findings are highly misleading, according to a new study in Environmental Research Letters. The study found that an alternative method of quantifying the impact of methane emissions has led to a raft of industry-friendly findings that the livestock sector seems to be using to claim climate neutrality as they continue to pollute.
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DeSmog ☛ Instagram Influencers Paid to Boost UAE’s Climate Credentials Over COP28
Social media influencers were paid to boost the UAE’s climate credentials in and around COP28 in what appears to be a coordinated PR effort by the oil-dependent host nation, DeSmog can reveal.
Instagram videos of glamorous couples lounging on sun-filled beaches or giving quirky outfit tutorials were used to spread positive messaging about the COP process and the UAE’s position on climate, as the critical UN talks progressed in Dubai.
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Finance
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Robert Reich ☛ How Amazon Is Ripping You Off
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Techdirt ☛ The Fntastic Shut Down Gets Weird: Vulgarities To Customers And A Rebrand
I will admit, after my last post on Russian game developer Fntastic shutting down operations days after the release of the much-hyped The Day After, I really thought it would be my last post on the this whole fiasco. But, no, it turns out that the developer has given us more to write about. If you need a quick summary, Fntastic hyped up the game as a zombie apocalypse MMO for several years, with lots of rumors swirling around as to whether the game was real, whether it was a scam, or whether it was a money-laundering operation. The game finally got released, got slammed by reviewers and the public alike, and four days later the studio announced it was shutting down.
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India Times ☛ US identifies use of AI as risk in financial system
US regulators have identified the use of artificial intelligence as a vulnerability in the financial system for the first time, according to a report released on Thursday.
There is a need to monitor "rapid developments in AI, including generative AI, to ensure that oversight structures keep up with or stay ahead of emerging risks to the financial system," said the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) in its annual report.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Retail sales remain sluggish in China, as world’s second-largest economy confronts ‘difficulties and challenges’
Chinese retail sales rose less than expected last month, official data showed Friday, showing demand in the world’s number two economy remains sluggish a year after strict Covid containment measures were lifted.
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Digital Music News ☛ Luminate Moves Ahead With Indie Retailer Sales Calculation Changes Despite Vinyl Sector Opposition
Despite pushback from organizations including the Vinyl Alliance, Luminate is moving full steam ahead with major changes to the way it reports indie vinyl sales. Luminate’s intention to proceed with the pivots, about which we reported earlier in December, entered the media spotlight in a recent piece from Billboard.
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The Straits Times ☛ Small businesses in Indonesia gain steam as campaign season jacks up demand for giveaways
One small business could earn an estimated net profit of 25 million rupiah (S$2,140) from producing 50,000 T-shirts a day.
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YLE ☛ Trade union: Thursday's strikes will go ahead
Public transport is set to grind to a near standstill across Finland on Thursday.
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YLE ☛ Thursday's papers: Strikes, border reopened, holiday post
Political strikes being staged in Finland on Thursday are not only shutting down most commuter transport, but also impacting a wide range of other public and private services.
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YLE ☛ Photo gallery: Industrial action has striking effect on Helsinki
Parts of the capital looked like a ghost town on Thursday due to a strike by transport workers.
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Techdirt ☛ 1 Week After ‘The Day Before’ Launches, Fntastic Closes Its Doors For Business
As the old saying goes, if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, then it’s probably a scammy game developer you shouldn’t trust. Here at Techdirt, we started paying attention to The Day Before, pitched as an ambitious MMO survival game by Russian developer Fntastic nearly five years ago, when the company claimed it had to delay its launch over a trademark dispute with some random calendar app maker. From there, Fntastic indicated it was going to change the name of the game, but ultimately didn’t. To that end, The Day Before released on Steam nearly a week ago.
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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Pro Publica ☛ Michigan Enacts Laws to Reform Its Juvenile Justice System
In 2020, the detention of a Michigan teenager for failing to do her homework drew widespread outrage: protests outside the facility where she was held and petitions calling for her release. More broadly, the case of the girl identified as Grace put scrutiny on a troubled system that allowed a 15-year-old to be locked up for months for a noncriminal offense.
The following year, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed a task force to study the state’s juvenile justice system. It recommended changes to state law, policy and funding, many of which advocates had been calling for.
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[Repeat] Michael Geist ☛ The Most Dangerous Canadian Internet Bill You’ve Never Heard Of Is a Step Closer to Becoming Law
After years of battles over Bills C-11 and C-18, few Canadians will have the appetite for yet another troubling Internet bill. But given a bill that envisions government-backed censorship, mandates age verification to use search engines or social media sites, and creates a framework for court-ordered website blocking, there is a need to pay attention. Bill S-210, or the Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act, was passed by the Senate in April after Senators were reluctant to reject a bill framed as protecting children from online harm. The same scenario appears to be playing out in the House of Commons, where yesterday a majority of the House voted for the bill at second reading, sending it to the Public Safety committee for review. The bill, which is the brainchild of Senator Julie Miville-Duchêne, is not a government bill. In fact, government ministers voted against it. Instead, the bill is backed by the Conservatives, Bloc and NDP with a smattering of votes from backbench Liberal MPs. Canadians can be forgiven for being confused that after months of championing Internet freedoms, raising fears of censorship, and expressing concern about CRTC overregulation of the Internet, Conservative MPs were quick to call out those who opposed the bill (the House sponsor is Conservative MP Karen Vecchio).
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The Business Journals ☛ Broadcom laying off 577 VMware employees in Austin following acquisition
Broadcom Inc. recently closed its $61 billion acquisition of VMware Inc., and it now plans to lay off hundreds of VMware employees in Austin.
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Gannett ☛ Tech company VMware announces plans to slash 577 jobs in Austin
In the letter, Broadcom said the layoffs would begin Jan. 26. The company did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment.
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Reuters ☛ Broadcom closes $69 billion VMware deal after China approval
China's regulatory approval came through on Tuesday after ongoing tensions with the U.S. around tougher chip export control measures had stoked fears among some investors on the company's ability to close the deal before the Nov. 26 deadline.
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Johan Halse ☛ The goat of tyranny
Snowden warned us about “turnkey tyranny” over ten years ago. When you’ve got cameras, facial recognition, satellites, drones, and electronic eavesdropping easily available at scale, you’ve really tilted the playing field against anyone wanting to hold you accountable. It’s become a big part of the system keeping dictators in power. Defending strongpoints (the Kremlin, Baharestan, the Gävle goat) has become a lot easier, especially if you couple it with excessive force. Someone had to pay over 100k SEK and spend six months in prison for burning the thing two years ago.
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India Times ☛ Explainer: What's next for the EU AI Act?
Very little is known of the actual text of the deal. The only public disclosure so far has been a press release with broad points of agreement. Government officials received an email with more details and officials are looking to publish a meatier dossier within weeks.
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India Times ☛ AI accelerating disruption widens IT skills gap, says survey
With AI accelerating disruption at an unprecedented pace, IT departments are facing a talent shortage, as one in three IT leaders surveyed flagged difficulty in finding qualified talent. It also stated that the current scenario presents a missed opportunity for strengthening business outcomes and talent retention.
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The Register UK ☛ Everyone's talking about AI but industry reps say few are ready to implement
Businesses are clamoring to adopt AI, without really knowing what to do with it, according to speakers on a panel at last week's Canalys APAC Forum in Bangkok.
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Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda
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[Repeat] New York Times ☛ Pro-China YouTube Network Used A.I. to Malign U.S., Report Finds
The 10-minute post was one of more than 4,500 videos in an unusually large network of YouTube channels spreading pro-China and anti-U.S. narratives, according to a report this week from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a security-focused think tank.
Some of the videos used artificially generated avatars or voice-overs, making the campaign the first influence operation known to the institute to pair A.I. voices with video essays.
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New York Times ☛ The North Sea Can Be Scary. But Maybe Not Fentanylware (TikTok) Scary.
A trend nobody asked for is here: Terrifying videos of unruly waves.
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Techdirt ☛ Judge Upholds Texas’ Ban Of TikTok On State-Owned Devices
We’ve repeatedly noted how the Republican quest to ban TikTok is both stupid and performative.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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Meduza ☛ Cassation court upholds Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin’s sentence for ‘fakes’ about Russian army — Meduza
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RFA ☛ China silencing critics in US, Congress told
Chinese critics of Beijing living in America are surveilled, intimidated and harassed by U.S.-based agents of the Chinese Communist Party, and the freedom of family members back home is threatened unless they stop speaking out, activists told Congress on Wednesday.
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Kansas Reflector ☛ Kansas school district turns against books that mention nudity, sexual orientation, gender identity
When asked if this broad wording could subject all books at the elementary level to scrutiny and potential removal, district spokesman Jake Potter said he couldn’t speak to the specific language of the policy.
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Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
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BIA Net ☛ Journalists' Association condemns journalist & columnist of government-affiliated newspaper
The Journalists' Association stated that Halit Turan's article titled "Delegation Market in CHP! İmamoglu opened the purse strings: The bribery wheel starts from 500,000 lira" and Mahmut Övür's column titled "Conscience and Wallet Reckoning in CHP İstanbul" were presented to the readers without evidence and with the perception that there was a factual basis.
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Shadowproof ☛ Shadowproof Is Shutting Down
Beginning today, Shadowproof memberships will transition to supporting The Dissenter newsletter. Members will receive an email with more information, but if need help making changes to your subscription, please contact Brian at brian@shadowproof.com.
This change will present new challenges. Kevin Gosztola will continue his journalism at The Dissenter newsletter but without much of the supportive infrastructure that was built through Shadowproof.
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RFA ☛ China to limit access to court judgment searches to internal use
China has announced plans to take its court records offline, creating a limited-access database that excludes members of the public, according to official documents.
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The Hindu ☛ Journalists, writers express solidarity with NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha
“Institutions have been captured, institutions have been manipulated, and media freedom is under full-scale attack…of course, there are still spaces where people speak up,” said Mr. Ram, adding that it was a very disturbing period this year that he would refer to it as the “Hindutva authoritarian regime”.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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RFA ☛ EU Parliament calls on China to abolish Tibetan boarding schools
The resolution accuses Chinese authorities of using state-run boarding schools in Tibet to “eliminate the distinct linguistic, cultural, and religious traditions among Tibetans and other minorities.”
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European Parliament ☛ Human rights breaches in Belarus, Tanzania and Tibet
Parliament strongly condemns the repressive assimilation policies in place throughout China, especially the boarding school system in Tibet that seeks to eliminate the distinct linguistic, cultural, and religious traditions among Tibetans and other minorities, such as Uyghurs. MEPs call for the immediate abolition of this authoritarian system imposed on children in Tibet and the practice of family separations as highlighted by United Nations experts, while urging the Chinese authorities to allow the establishment of private Tibetan schools. Arguing that efforts to forcibly assimilate Tibetan children violate international human rights law, the resolution welcomes the U.S. announcement to restrict visas on Chinese officials tied to the boarding school system in Tibet, with MEPs also urging the EU to adopt similar targeted sanctions. The text recalls the importance of the EU raising the issue of human rights violations in China, particularly the situation in Tibet, at every political and human rights dialogue with the Chinese authorities.
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CoryDoctorow ☛ How the NYPD defeated bodycams
Police boosters insist that police violence and corruption are the result of "a few bad apples." As the saying goes, "a few bad apples spoil the bushel." If you think there are just a few bad cops on the force, then you should want to get rid of them before they wreck the whole institution. Bodycams could empirically identify the bad apples, right?
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Gizmodo ☛ Tesla's Fight With Swedish Unions Just Got Trashy
Tesla has been in trouble with the country’s unions since it failed to ratify an agreement with the IF Metall workers in October. Those mechanics decided to go on strike instead of allowing themselves to be bulldozed by the car company and, as soon as they did, other regional labor unions began engaging in various actions to support them.
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The Nation ☛ Moms for Liberty Isn’t Going Anywhere
The verdict is in. Moms for Liberty is over. News of a tawdry sex scandal involving one of the group’s cofounders, coming on the heels of a drubbing at the hands of voters last month, has cemented conventional wisdom that the conservative “parental rights” organization is flailing. Yet, despite the poor performance with voters, not to mention a steady stream of headlines wildly at odds with the group’s moral crusading, the obituary is premature. Moms for Liberty isn’t going anywhere.
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ACLU ☛ The Consequences of Police in Schools: A North Carolina Case Study
At the end of the 2022-2023 school year, when she was 14 years old, a verbal altercation occurred between Amerie and a classmate who was berating her and other classmates. This wasn’t the first time that Amerie, a student in North Carolina, faced harassment and bullying from some of her classmates. Her mother, Regina, had repeatedly contacted the school to bring the bullying to their attention, but no interventions took place.
This time, however, the dispute required a teacher to step in, who was later bumped by a student during the intervention. Amerie was taken to the principal’s office by a school resource office (SRO), where she was questioned by the school administration with the SRO present. They determined Amerie was responsible for the physical altercation, despite the teacher saying she hadn’t been hurt and was unable to confirm who made contact with her. Amerie was told she was being sent home and would be suspended. The officer placed her in handcuffs, which were too tight and hurt her wrists.
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Reason ☛ Thomas Massie: Why Not Vote 'No'?
Congressman Thomas Massie discusses his "no" votes on foreign aid, COVID-19 relief, and labeling anti-Zionism antisemitism on episode two of Just Asking Questions.
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RFA ☛ Jailed Cambodian-American hospitalized amid hunger strike
Her case appealing 2022 treason conviction is delayed amid health concerns.
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Pro Publica ☛ How Police Have Undermined the Promise of Body Cameras
When Barbara and Belvett Richards learned that the police had killed their son, they couldn’t understand it. How, on that September day in 2017, did their youngest child come to be shot in his own apartment by officers from the New York Police Department?
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Pro Publica ☛ Knoxville’s Youth Detention Center Locked Up Kids Alone 1,000 Times in Three Months
To hear the state of Tennessee tell it, Knoxville’s Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center has shown “significant and consistent improvement.” It no longer illegally locks kids up alone in cells, as an investigation by ProPublica and WPLN exposed last month.
But a closer look at the facility’s most recent inspection by the state Department of Children’s Services tells a different story. Instead of secluding children against their will, the facility claims that kids are voluntarily agreeing to be locked up alone. In the first three months of 2023, the facility used this “voluntary” seclusion more than 1,000 times — even though there were usually only about 30 kids staying there. That’s three times as many incidents as a similar period the year before.
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Pro Publica ☛ Lawmaker Calls for Reform of Louisiana Mayor’s Courts
Amid questions about how he ran his court, the mayor of the tiny village of Fenton, Louisiana, recently decided he would no longer serve as the town judge.
He had been recorded saying police officers must write more tickets and now found himself defending his impartiality. Some court records included notations by officers and village employees saying not to “fix” certain tickets; other notations said tickets were dropped after someone, often a law enforcement officer, had intervened.
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Meduza ☛ Russia’s Novgorod region bans ‘coercing’ women to have abortions — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Bill to ban abortions in private clinics at federal level submitted to Russian State Duma — Meduza
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Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
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APNIC ☛ Charting APNIC’s course for the next four years
The Executive Council is pleased to announce the availability of APNIC’s new four-year strategy.
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APNIC ☛ Rajnesh Singh appointed APNIC Foundation CEO
The APNIC Foundation is pleased to announce it has appointed Rajnesh Singh as its new CEO.
Raj is well known to many in the Asia Pacific Internet community, joining the Foundation from the Internet Society where he worked for more than 15 years building the Internet Society’s presence in the region.
Prior to his time at Internet Society, Raj spent time in the business sector developing technology startup companies as both a founder and investor.
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DomainTools ☛ IPv6: You May Already Be Using It
The Internet has largely allocated all of the IPv4 addresses it has traditionally relied on, but because of clever work-arounds meant to “stretch” the currently available IPv4 address space, many people may not have been aware of that fact. Nonetheless, we all should be getting ready for the future of IPv6. Many people may already be using IPv6, they just may not know it.
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APNIC ☛ APNIC celebrates 30 years: Part 8 — The Information Society Innovation Fund
The story of APNIC’s last 30 years wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the Information Society Innovation Fund (ISIF Asia).
The origins of ISIF Asia can be traced back to the 1990s to the Pan Asia Networking (PAN) Program by Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC). The PAN Program initiative was among the earliest grant programs in the world to distribute Internet development grants.
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Techdirt ☛ Things That Make No Sense: Epic Lost Its Fight Over Apple’s Closed iOS Platform, But Won It Over Google’s More Open Android Platform
When Epic went after both Apple and Google a few years ago with antitrust claims regarding the need to go through their app stores to get on phones, we noted that it seemed more like negotiation-by-lawsuit. Both Apple and Google have cut some deals with larger companies to lower the 30% cut the companies take on app payments, and it seemed like these lawsuits were just an attempt to get leverage. That was especially true with regards to the complaint against Google, given that it’s much, much easier to route around the Google Play Store and get apps onto an Android phone.
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[Repeat] Digital Music News ☛ Did Spotify Just Score a Major Victory Against Apple in the EU?
While this particular ruling will only focus on Apple’s anti-steering rules and only for music streaming services, the broader Digital Markets Act in the EU could bring about more changes. It’s also possible Apple could face a potentially hefty fine—as much as 10% annual sales in the EU. Bloomberg notes that these penalties seldom reach the maximum level, however.
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Patents
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JUVE ☛ JCB and Manitou settle litigation over telehandler patents
J.C. Bamford Excavators (commonly known as JCB) and Manitou, which both operate in the construction and agricultural vehicle market, have confirmed the end of ongoing patent monopoly litigation proceedings. A joint statement reads, “Manitou BF and JC Bamford Excavators Limited have decided, by mutual agreement, to put an end to all patent monopoly infringement litigation.
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JUVE ☛ Thum IP opens office at Lake Constance with Daub patent monopoly attorney [Ed: This is SPAM. This publication, which helped some cabal commit a crime (for a bribe), is pretending some single person aged 46 taking some job is major news rather than marketing spam.]
Thum IP, which was launched two years ago in Munich as a spin-off of Wuesthoff & Wuesthoff, is opening a new office at Lake Constance. In addition to experienced patent monopoly attorney Frank Eichelhardt (46), the Thum IP start-up team at Lake Constance will also include lawyer Sebastian Schneller and a patent monopoly engineer.
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Emergency Motion Sheds some Light on the Litigation Funder – Law Firm Relationship
This appeal was filed after CTD’s infringement case was dismissed on the pleadings with Judge Rodriguez (W.D.Tex.) finding the patentee failed to include plausible allegations of infringement of any claims from the patents-in-suit. U.S. Patent Nos. 8,327,442; 9,438,614; 9,503,470; and 11,171,974. Rather, according to the court, CTD improperly mixed and matched elements across Microsoft’s various software tools in its pleadings and failed plead that Abusive Monopolist Microsoft makes, uses, or sells the required hardware components.
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Acadia: Easy Tricks to Skirt Double Patenting Challenges
I have been writing some about obviousness-type double patenting and thought I would continue the process with this important new decision from Judge Williams denying the generic competitor’s motion for summary judgment of invalidity based upon double patenting, and, in fact, granting the patentee’s summary judgment of no invalidity. The case involves an attempt by generics to begin marketing a generic version of Acadia’s Parkinson’s drug Nuplazid (pimavanserin). This will be an interesting appeal to watch.
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Copyrights
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Torrent Freak ☛ Pirate IPTV Service Glo TV Faces $25m Lawsuit, Resellers' Feet Held to the Fire
A copyright lawsuit filed by DISH Network in a New York court this week targets pirate IPTV provider Glo TV and several alleged resellers. The identities of Glo TV's operators are currently unknown but by also targeting those identified more easily, DISH may choose to put their feet to the fire and see who sweats first. With $25m in damages on the line, December could be a warm month.
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Torrent Freak ☛ Pirate Site Blocking Demands Intensify as U.S. Lawmakers Get Fmovies Walkthrough
Lawmakers saw a live demonstration of popular pirate movie streaming site Fmovies at a House Subcommittee Hearing yesterday. The walkthrough served as an introduction to renewed calls for site-blocking measures, which are gaining traction. U.S. Representative Ted Lieu, who swiftly loaded Fmovies on his phone, urged ISPs to block the blatant pirate site, right now.
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[Old] Charter Communications ☛ The copyright expires: Mickey Mouse goes public
To be clear, it’s only the version of Mickey Mouse from “Steamboat Willie” that anyone in the public can use without permission to create new stories and new art. That Mickey Mouse has a long rat-like black nose, basic oval eyes with no pupils and a long, spindly, curvy black tail. Any future iterations of Mickey Mouse – including any showing Mickey Mouse in color – are still under Disney’s control.
But the copyright on the Steamboat-Willie-version will run out in 2024 after 95 years. Initially, copyrights only lasted 28 years. But, due in large part to Disney’s lobbying and legal efforts, copyrights were first extended to 75 years, then later to 95 years. Yet now that 95-year protection is about to run out on “Steamboat Willie.”
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Time ☛ Earliest Versions of Disney’s Mickey Mouse and Minnie to Enter Public Domain in 2024
U.S. law allows a copyright to be held for 95 years after Congress expanded it several times during Mickey’s life.
“It’s sometimes derisively referred to as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act,” Jenkins said. “That’s oversimplified because it wasn’t just Disney that was pushing for term extension. It was a whole group of copyright holders whose works were set to go into the public domain soon, who benefited greatly from the 20 years of extra protection.”
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John Hopkins University ☛ Mickey Mouse heads to the public domain, but what does that mean for Disney and other copyright holders?
According to Lee, Disney will have many options for protecting its intellectual [sic] property [sic] rights [sic] to Mickey Mouse. For one, only the earliest version of Mickey Mouse appearing in Steamboat Willie will be entering the public domain. “The image of Mickey from Steamboat Willie looks very different from the typical Mickey Mouse we see today,” Lee said. “Disney has also taken to modernizing the character over the year, giving him bigger ears, giving him pupils, and different shorts.” Lee says Disney still retains rights to all later iterations of Mickey and to any associated registered trademarks, such as the Mickey Mouse ears used in the Disney logo. She adds that these measures help Disney extend its copyrights and cement the company’s association with the character.
Copyright differs from trademarks, which are meant to protect a company’s identity and differentiate one product from another in the marketplace. Registered trademarks include identifying logos and imagery such as Tiffany Blue or the Nike Swoosh.
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Loyola University Chicago ☛ Is Disney Losing Mickey Mouse Because of Copyright Law?
The first federal copyright law came into existence in 1790. This law guaranteed protection of a copyright for 14 years, with an option for a renewal of another 14 years. Copyright law then changed in 1909, when copyright terms were extended to 28 years, with an option for a 28 year extension upon renewal. Under this law, Disney’s original Steamboat Willie Mickey Mouse would have expired in 1984.
However, Disney lobbied for copyright law to extend copyright terms by 20 years in the 1970’s. Disney’s lobbying efforts led to the Copyright Act of 1976, which allowed copyright protection for Disney’s beloved character to be extended.
Two decades later, Congress passed the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 (coined the ‘Mickey Mouse Protection Act’). This created the current rules for WMFH copyrights. In addition, it changed the rules for works created before 1978 by adding another 20 years to the renewal term, for a total of 95 years. This additional term retroactively applied to existing works like the original Mickey. Therefore, instead of expiring in 1984, the Mickey in “Steamboat Willie” expires January 1, 2024.
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Fortune ☛ Mickey Mouse will soon belong to everyone as Disney’s copyright on the earliest versions of the character expires in 2024
“Now, the audience is going to set the terms,” said Cory Doctorow, an author and activist who advocates for broader public ownership of works.
January 1, 2024, has long been circled on the calendars of public domain watchers, but some say it serves to show how overlong it takes for U.S. works to go public, and many properties with less pedigree than Winnie or Minnie can disappear or be forgotten with their copyrights murky.
“The fact that there are works that are still recognizable and enduring after 95 years is is frankly remarkable,” Doctorow said. “And it makes you think about the stuff that we must have lost, that would still have currency.”
Other properties entering the U.S. public domain are Charlie Chaplin’s film “Circus,” Virginia Woolf’s novel “Orlando” and Eugene O’Neill’s play “Long Day’s Journey into Night.”
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Walled Culture ☛ Generative AI will be a huge boon for the public domain – unless copyright blocks it
A situation in which generative AI creations are unequivocally in the public domain could unleash a flood of pent-up creativity. Unfortunately, as the Ars Technica article rightly points out, the status of AI generated artworks is already slightly unclear. We can expect the copyright world to push hard to exploit that opening, and to demand that everything created by computers should be locked down under copyright for decades, just as human inspiration generally is from the moment it is in a fixed form. Artists should enjoy this new freedom to explore and build on generative AI images while they can – it may not last.
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Creative Commons ☛ Celebrating Two Years of CC’s Open Culture Voices
Today we conclude the Open Culture Voices series, which over two years has showcased more than 65 open culture experts and practitioners from around the world. Over these two years we have had the privilege of engaging with remarkable individuals, each bringing their unique insights and stories to our community.
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The Register UK ☛ Science fiction writers imagine a future in which AI doesn’t abuse copyright, or their generosity
That sad state of affairs came about after the likes of OpenAI built models by scouring the [Internet] for material to analyze. Those models can now generate text in the style of authors whose work they ingested, without recognizing – or compensating – those authors.
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Gemini* and Gopher
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Personal/Opinions
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Reflections on Energy (part 1)
Recently, I have had more energy. It feels strange. I have some things to say about the strangeness, but maybe some context would help.
Sometime last year, when I was weaning off clonezepam and wired and tired, I suddenly felt like doing something different. I stumbled across a journal of writing prompts I'd received for Christmas. There is one prompt per page, which means you don't have much room for any single prompt.
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🔤SpellBinding — EFGILNX Wordo: YAWNS
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Politics and World Events
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More of the fun commentary you've come to... love :-)
Repeatedly see commitments and/or other matters requiring sustained focus as above-average fun/rewarding, genuinely/earnestly seeking out evidence of how/why they are (above-average fun/rewarding) while *enjoying* that fun/reward until they - just like magic! - *are*.
And don't get caught up on whether that means it's not "really real", because there is no such thing. It's how you see/model/re-present it - aka reality - period.
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You say you want a gemvolution, well you know
To me, individuality is a mental illness driving antisocial behavior, and thus social misery in a given space is necessarily proportional to number of sick participants. The words "Eternal September" describe a moment in time when a critical mass of anti-socials accumulated in a social space. Kaboom! Kadoom!
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Technology and Free Software
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Thoughts about Threads
Finally, Meta has announced initial testing of ActivityPub support in Threads, and people discuss the potential threat to the fediverse (again).
I don't see an immediate problem if the ActivityPub implementation you use ignores posts from a user without followers: if user A on server B sends a post to user C on server D but D ignores posts from A (instead of saving and displaying them) because C doesn't follow A (and nobody else on D does), B can't flood D with content (like ads or opinions most users on D disagree with). I don't know how Mastodon, Lemmy, etc' behave but I believe most big servers have basic protection like rate limiting, in case Threads floods them with content. However, the fediverse is very malleable, and Threads can introduce ActivityPub extensions that can be used for things like tracking, and create a situation where servers that don't support these extensions can't federate with Threads, forcing servers to choose between losing users (who have many friends on Threads and prefer compatibility) or implementing extensions that make money for Meta.
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2023-12-15
"Dress up like a slightly conservative IT management guy! That will make it easier to cross the US border." That was what a friend said. I actually considered it for a while.
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PinePhone - ProtonMail
Another way to use ProtonMail is to run Proton Bridge to encrypt/decrypt the mailbox locally, and access the mail with an email client. However, the site says Proton Bridge is only available for subscribers. I have note tested this with a free account.
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Monopolies/Monopsonies
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* Gemini (Primer) links can be opened using Gemini software. It's like the World Wide Web but a lot lighter.