Alice's Restaurant

It's that special day of the year when you have to listen to Arlo Guthrie before you eat some turkey...

Marijuana decriminalization bill stirs up debate in Vermont

Montpelier --Supporters of a bill that would decriminalize the sale and possession of as much as four ounces of marijuana told a Vermont Senate committee yesterday evening that the measure would drive down prison costs and do no harm to minors who just want to experiment with the drug.

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Hey, it's about time people here in VT realized what a waste of time it is chasing people smoking pot. I agree with the harsher penalties for cocaine and heroin. These are far more harmful to society as a whole. You can also can the "gateway" argument. The real gateway drugs are alcohol and nicotine. Both are completely legal, and have been statistically proven to be the starting point for youth drug use. This would appear to be a no brainer....

Europe Embraces Decriminalizing File Sharing

The message put forward by the parties is pretty strong: “Whenever you rent a movie, the multinational media industry forces you to watch their propaganda. They claim that downloading movies is the same as snatching bags, stealing cars or shoplifting. That’s simply not true – making a copy is fundamentally different from stealing.”


European Politicians Launch Pro-Filesharing Campaign


I'm not sure that this movement is going to gain any traction in the US anytime soon. I like the fact that Europeans are open minded and recognize the flaws in the RIAA/MPAA approach to combating piracy. The "The Genie is Out of the Bottle" line of thinking makes a lot more sense than the "Let's Punish the End-User Approach". I've never seen an industry as a whole adopt an approach that believes alienating the consumer will improve the almighty bottom line. The closest analogy I can think of is the automobile industry. There was a time when, your car needed repair, you were required (By the Big 3) to bring it back to the dealership or void your warranty. This tactic was used to eliminate the little guy by forbidding the consumer to bring their vehicle to the repair shop of their choosing. You would hear these crazy stories of people who were denied legitimate warranty service because they had their tires or wipers changed elsewhere. When the imports became a serious challenge to the Big 3, they were forced to drop this ludicrous position.

Until the consumers revolt and some company comes along with a more reasonable policy, these chucleheads at the RIAA/MPAA will continue to alienate the very people to which they are trying to suck the entertainment dollar from....

Sony and RIAA ripe for a lawsuit

RIAA lawyer states in legal brief that copying songs from CDs to computer for personal use is just as illegal as posting them online.You, too, could be sued for thousands of dollars by the major record companies — even if you've never once illegally downloaded music.That's because at least one lawyer for the Recording Industry Association of America, the Big Four record companies' lobbying arm and primary legal weapon, considers the copying of songs from your own CDs to your own computer, for your own personal use, to be just as illegal as posting them online for all to share, according to a federal lawsuit filed in Arizona.

Here's my beef with this whole RIAA crap......If I buy a CD from the Sony/BMG Record Club and pop it into the Sony manufactured CD drive of my Sony Vaio laptop, I might even make a duplicate copy onto some Sony made CD-Rs for good measure, I can't see how the RIAA (representing Sony)could then sue me.....according to them and the courts, merely "enabling" copyright violation is in itself a violation. Why hasn't anyone caught on to this concept? I would like to see an artist sue Sony and the RIAA for "enabling" copyright violations and for not protecting them from said violations.I would go one step further and say that Sony was in fact tantamount in the consortium of companies that developed digital file standards and mp3's themselves. Thus Sony is one example of a copyright violation enabler...Stop and think of how many violations Sony alone has enabled through software and hardware as well as blank media. You could apply this theory backwards into the Eighties when mix tapes were the rage. Who made the best blank tapes and tape recorders....Sony! Can you say Walkman? If you apply the same amounts that Jammie Thomas was slapped with...you get the picture. Bye Bye Sony.....

Read more about what these pinheads had to say...

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The Night Before Christmas

Check this out...It's a Zorse!

I wouldn't have believed this if I hadn't seen it. It's pretty cool....I think I want one!

What the hell is a zorse?

Pillowfights Are Breaking Out Across Vermont!

I saw this post from Cathy Resmer at Seven Days. A pillow fight broke out in Brattleboro and another is apparently scheduled for July 28th in Montpelier. ...I can hardly wait!

I got on the Adam Schein video mailbag!

I had recently emailed Fox Sports NFL writer Adam Schein about the QB situation in Minnesota. Toward the end of the segment he responds to my question and gives a shout out for Vermont fans.

See the Segment Here!

Camera Trap Captures Three-legged Sumatran Tiger

Just in case the kid that killed the peacock wasn't enough to make you question the actions of humans, you can sink your teeth into this gem...

Camera trap captures three-legged Sumatran tiger

Pea-brained teen is sought in S.I. fowl play

A wild peacock wandering Staten Island was brutally stomped by a deranged teenager and had to be euthanized, authorities said yesterday.
"I'm killing a vampire!" the suspect bragged maniacally as witnesses tried to stop him from attacking the beautiful bird .....

This is just a reminder for us all what a wonderful world we live in....

Pea-brained teen is sought in S.I. fowl play

Frequent N.H. Speeder Wants Limit Raised

DOVER, N.H. (AP) - A man with a penchant for speedy driving has come up with an unusual tactic for beating speeding tickets - raise the limit. So far this year, Larry Lemay has been ticketed four times for speeding.
Rather than slow down, Lemay is suing the state Department of Transportation to study traffic and speed limits across New Hampshire, to see whether limits could be raised.




My Way News - Frequent N.H. Speeder Wants Limit Raised

FBI Whistleblower Describes Government Muscle Tactics

A whistleblower who lost her job and was gagged by the Bush administration after revealing careerism, corruption and widespread incompetence at the FBI detailed her difficult search for justice to an audience on Monday at the American Library Association's annual conference. Sibel Edmonds, who the FBI hired as a translator shortly after 9/11, was fired in 2002 after reporting a range of problems at the bureau...

What transpires is without a doubt a huge misuse of the public's trust in some mythical right to a fair trial.


Read more at Wired Blogs

VMG Spider

New Microsoft Product!

You may have seen the recent unveiling of this futuristic new product from Redmond... Notice how it didn't take long for people to goof on it!

SarcasticGamer.com

Mike Nolan Will Be Stylin' at Home in 2007

In a surprising turn of events, Brian McCarthy, the NFL's director of corporate communications, announced Wednesday that San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan will be allowed to wear a suit on the sideline for all eight of his team's home games.
Nolan has been pushing the NFL for the right to wear a suit more often, which is his way of honoring his father, Dick Nolan, who roamed the 49ers sideline in a suit from 1968 to 1975.

Mike Nolan Will Be Stylin' at Home in 2007

Eeeeewwwwww!!!

Middle School student Kyleray Katherman had a hunch something was amiss with the school's drinking fountain water. And right he was.For an English assignment, he tested the bacteria content at four water fountains and one toilet to challenge a ban on students from bringing bottled water to class. It seems some were using it to sneak in alcohol.Guess which was cleaner? It wasn't the water fountains.

Toilet Water Cleaner Than Fountain

I Love Vermont More Every Day

Here is a good description of the Vermont secession movement. There are some good points made here...they just forgot to tell Bill O'reilly to kiss our Green Mountain ass!

Loud Murmurs » I Love Vermont More Every Day

A Major League Meltdown...

A major league meltdown by a minor league manager earned him a three-game suspension and worldwide fame on the Internet. Combining bits of Earl Weaver, Billy Martin and Lou Piniella, the weekend tantrum by Double-A manager Phillip Wellman prompted his bosses at the Atlanta Braves to take action Monday.

I love it! This guy just completely loses his mind. I wish I could hear what he was saying...now that's priceless. I just hope we never see that at a Vermont Mountaineers game....

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Apple's Prediction of Computing in 2010

I've seen this video a bunch of times over the years. It's fun to watch, but the really funny thing was some of the comments people made on the Digg for it....

Digg - Apple's prediction of computing in 2010, from 1988

Michael Jackson's Anti-Gravity Boots!

I came across this gem describing a US patent given to Michael Jackson. The invention allows MJ to give the illusion of defying gravity on stage while in the middle of his dance routine. He's so clever!
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of legal mumbo-jumbo that goes into describing something so simple.

You can find some really interesting things by searching Google Patents.

Method and means for creating anti-gravity