Saturday, August 25, 2007

More About Unlocked iPhones and the Legality of it All

As I mentioned in an earlier post, someone's going to get sued over unlocked iPhones. And, I believe there are plenty of legal arguments for doing so, none of which have anything to do with copyright, as the linked story suggests. I'd love to read the iPhone's EULA, which I'm guessing includes verbiage directly addressing the topic of unlocking one's phone.

Digg Report

Digg Report: Todays #1 Digg, at 3120 Diggs, resurects the whole "tilt-shifting" photographic trick, which, while interesting, doesn't need to be Dugg every few months.

Austria Joins In Against Missile Defense System

You know, when you take the European missile shield in context, that is, that it is to be comprised of 10 interceptor missiles based in Poland and a radar facility in the Czech Republic, it's hard to fathom how Russia or anyone else (certainly, Austria) could consider this a provocation against anyone but rogue states such as Iran.

I mean, really: how much protection would such a system represent against a Russian nuclear attack? I'd say, it would be pretty damn negligible. Which makes me wonder at what the real politics are behind the whole thing--mainly, that it has nothing to do with the system itself, but rather all to do with the pro-Western leanings of Poland and the Czechs.

Marine Drill Sergeant Charged with Abuse

I hope these were some really serious abuses. I can't imagine having gone through boot camp (U.S. Army) myself without having been "abused." I wouldn't have learned the things I needed to learn, which first and foremost was: when your superior tells you to move in combat, you move, without thinking about it first. Or, probably, you die.

The entire purpose of boot camp is to tear down certain aspects of a recruit's personality and build them back up to make him a good soldier. Sometimes, that requires drill sergeants to do what those in the civilian world might call "mean," or, in the case of the linked story, "abusive."

It would be a shame if the Marines were to relax the harshness of their legendary training. Because ultimately, a Marine then wouldn't be a Marine.