Author: Matthew G. Saroff

Here’s Hoping that The Farmer Wins

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An Indiana soybean farmer, bought seeds from the local elevator and replanted them, and was promptly sued by the axis of evil Monsanto, and the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case:

As David versus Goliath battles go it is hard to imagine a more uneven fight than the one about to play out in front of the US supreme court between Vernon Hugh Bowman and Monsanto.

On the one side is Bowman, a single 75-year-old Indiana soybean farmer who is still tending the same acres of land as his father before him in rural south-western Indiana. On the other is a gigantic multibillion dollar agricultural business famed for its zealous protection of its commercial rights.

Not that Bowman sees it that way. “I really don’t consider it as David and Goliath. I don’t think of it in those terms. I think of it in terms of right and wrong,” Bowman told The Guardian in an interview.

Either way, in the next few weeks Bowman and Monsanto’s opposing legal teams will face off in front of America’s most powerful legal body, weighing in on a case that deals with one of the most fundamental questions of modern industrial farming: who controls the rights to the seeds planted in the ground.

………

As David versus Goliath battles go it is hard to imagine a more uneven fight than the one about to play out in front of the US supreme court between Vernon Hugh Bowman and Monsanto.

On the one side is Bowman, a single 75-year-old Indiana soybean farmer who is still tending the same acres of land as his father before him in rural south-western Indiana. On the other is a gigantic multibillion dollar agricultural business famed for its zealous protection of its commercial rights.

Not that Bowman sees it that way. “I really don’t consider it as David and Goliath. I don’t think of it in those terms. I think of it in terms of right and wrong,” Bowman told The Guardian in an interview.

Either way, in the next few weeks Bowman and Monsanto’s opposing legal teams will face off in front of America’s most powerful legal body, weighing in on a case that deals with one of the most fundamental questions of modern industrial farming: who controls the rights to the seeds planted in the ground.

I really, really, hope that Bowman cleans their clock in the Supreme Court.

The idea that the right of farmers to replant seeds, a right that is literally thousands of years old, and this right should not be, to paraphrase William Jennings Bryan, “Crucified on a cross of patent law.”

My guess is that it is likely that Bowman will prevail, as Monsanto prevailed at the district court, and then at the patent court, and these days, the Supreme Court only takes these cases when it wants to throw a brush back pitch at the patent court being nuts.

The case is Vernon Hugh Bowman v. Monsanto.

Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat!

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For the first time since 1415, the Pope Benedict has announced that he will be abdicating:

Citing failing strength of “mind and body,” Pope Benedict XVI stunned his closest aides and more than 1 billion Catholics by resigning on Monday, becoming the first pope to do so in nearly 600 years and ending the tenure of a formidable theologian who preached a gospel of conservative faith to a fast-changing world.

Keeping with his reputation as a traditionalist, Pope Benedict delivered his resignation — effective Feb. 28 — in Latin, to a private church body in Vatican City. “I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me,” he said. “For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of bishop of Rome, successor of Saint Peter.”

The decision by the 85-year-old German pontiff sets up a pivotal leadership contest in the marbled halls of the Vatican that is coming sooner than observers expected. Although questions about the pope’s health have long swirled — he was occasionally filmed nodding off during mass — he seemed committed to continuing a papacy that has divided Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

The question is whether it’s about his health, or whether, as as Digby suggests, that revelations from the case of former Archbishop of Los Angeles, Cardinal Roger Mahony, where Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, then leader of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (it used to be called the Inquisition) was directing the (non) response to the church’s sexual abuse scandal.

I’ll look forward to seeing Jon Stewart’s take on all this.

5 Principals for Modern Communications Technology

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Harold Feld, Senior Vice President of Public Knowledge, telco policy wonk extraordinaire, and friend with whom I do medieval recreation with, has a must read essay on what a modern IP based telephone system should be like.

Basically, and unsurprisingly, it comes down to the same 5 principals that current switch based phone system has:

  • Universal service for all Americans. (Lifeline service for the poor)
  • Guaranteed interconnection, so that a Verizon user can make a call to a Comcast user.
  • Meaningful consumer protections. (i.e. “truth in billing”, which is lacking in cell phone service right now)
  • Reliability (4 “9”s of reliability, something that is lacking in cell phone service right now, as well as various IP telephony services like AT&T’s UVerse)
  • Emergency calls that work. (911 standards)

As is clear to anyone who spent even a few years under Ma Bell, these are not new concepts.  Our phone system has run under this for the past 80 years, since the New Deal.

Unfortunately, with the urging of what I call the “free market mousketeers”, these principals have been slowly been rolled back, and this is not a good thing, as the people and first responders who were left without communications following super-storm Sandy can attest to.

As Mr. Feld notes, the real solutions to many of these problems is to separate the service (voice telephone) from the underlying technology (PSTN vs. IP, or whatever might succeed IP) from a regulatory perspective.

Watch the video.  It is both clear, and does a good job of making what is ordinarily a very dry subject accessible.

Why I Call Him the Worst Constitutional Law Professor Ever.

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Just in case your wondering how bad Obama’s assertions of the right to kill anyone, at any time, are, note that not only are they dubious constitutionally, they directly conflict with the black letter text of the Magna Carta, meaning that he’s not just ignoring 230 years of law, he’s ignoring 798 years of law:

Two provisions of Magna Carta deserve our attention today, a gift to us from the Barons of 13th century England.

38. No bailiff for the future shall, upon his own unsupported complaint, put anyone to his “law”, without credible witnesses brought for this purposes. {This was replaced by improved legislation in 1863}

39. No freemen shall be taken or imprisoned or disseised {deprived of land} or exiled or in any way destroyed, nor will we go upon him nor send upon him, except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land. {This remains in force for the people of England, but no longer in the USA}

Our ancestors spent much blood, sweat, and tears between that day at Runnymede and the meeting in 1878 at Philadelphia. The liberties provided by the Constitution were won over those 30 generations, by the unruly Saxons and Normans of Medieval England — and the Founders, jealous of their liberties and willing to fight for them. In the decade since 9-11 we’ve thoughtlessly thrown away political structures that took centuries to build.

This country in general, and the Obama administration in general, is going in a profoundly wrong directions.

They Blinked

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Just a day after some wingnuts in Michigan proposed a transvaginal ultrasound bill, Michigan’s House Speaker has said it’s not gonna happen:

Michigan’s House Speaker Jase Bolger (R) on Thursday categorically ruled out legislation introduced by his Republican colleagues to mandate transvaginal ultrasounds for women before having an abortion.

“While I want to be sure women have access to the best technology available, I have absolutely no interest in forcing a woman to have a transvaginal ultrasound,” Bolger said in a statement. “This House of Representatives will not pass a bill mandating transvaginal ultrasounds.”

Mr. Bolger is aware of how toxic the teabaggers in his caucus are, even as he has made his bed with them.

It’s Back!!!!

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A transvaginal ultrasound abortion bill has been submitted in the Michigan state house:

Michigan Republicans have introduced a bill requiring all women to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound before obtaining an abortion, a move that rekindles last year’s firestorm when other GOP-led states were considering similar measures.

The legislation introduced Tuesday in the state House ensures the “performance of a diagnostic ultrasound examination of the fetus at least two hours before an abortion is performed” and requires her to sign a consent form prior to the abortion. The bill was introduced by state Rep. Joel Johnson (R) and cosponsored by 22 fellow lawmakers.

Johnson was not available for comment Wednesday, but his legislative aide, Ben Frederick, confirmed to TPM that, while the legislation does not specifically mention transvaginal ultrasounds, the bill aims to require women to undergo an ultrasound prior to receiving an abortion.

Katie Carey, a spokeswoman for Michigan’s House Democratic Leader Tim Greimel, categorically said the bill would mandate transvaginal ultrasounds for women before an abortion.

Because, as the vice presidential hopes of Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell last year so clearly  showed, it’s such a political winner.

Attention Greece: You Now Have the Chance to Screw the Germans, Do IT!

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I was listening to NPR this morning, and discovered that the privatization/fire sale of Greek owned state assets that the IMF and the EU (really, the Germans) is not going as as quickly as expected, and one of the reasons is that some of the privatization deals actually effect the Germans and the rest as well, and they are objecting:

European governments, as well as Washington, are reportedly concerned over Russia’s possible expansion into Europe. Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned gas monopoly, has made a high bid for the Greek gas utility company. Media reports suggest the privatization agency has delayed choosing a buyer — under international pressure.

 There are also other strategic concerns, such as conflict with China over Greek ports.

 George Stathakis, an economist and lawmaker for the opposition leftist party Syriza, says China wants to expand its current control of a part of the Port of Piraeus and also buy the south-north railway link, raising fears China will flood the European markets with its inexpensive products.

 “German and Dutch interests are opposing the idea of using Greece as the primary source of Chinese trade with Europe,” Stathakis says.

(emphasis mine)

It’s not like the cheap Chinese crap will put Greek manufacturers out of business.  The Germans and the Dutch already did that.

Someone Greek will unload the ships, and someone Greek will fuel the ships, and someone Greek will operate the locomotives.

If some Germans lose their jobs over this, why should Greeks care?

Sauce for the gander.  The EU austerity caucus, with the Germans at the lead, had demanded, and got the dismantlement of the Greek public health insurance system.

Share the misery.

Obama agrees to release legal memos on Awlaki drone strike – latimes.com

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So, now that Michale Isikoff has released a leaked Department of Justice memo which summarized their legal opinion on drone strikes, it basically said that Obama can kill anyone he wants at any time, the White House has agreed top release the actual legal opinion to Congress:

President Obama, who has championed lethal drone strikes as a major part of U.S. counter-terrorism efforts, bowed to pressure Wednesday and agreed to allow the Senate and House intelligence committees to review classified legal memos used to justify a drone strike against a U.S. citizen in Yemen in 2011.

Senators had demanded for months to see the Justice Department opinions that provided the White House legal authority to order the targeted killing of Anwar Awlaki, a New Mexico native who became an Al Qaeda leader.

Complaints by several Democrats over not receiving the documents had cast a shadow on the Senate confirmation hearing Thursday of John Brennan, the White House counter-terrorism advisor tapped to be CIA director.

An administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss classified material, described the decision to release the classified Office of Legal Counsel material as “part of the president’s ongoing commitment to consult with Congress on national security matters.”

“I think this is an encouraging first step,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat who sits on the Intelligence Committee and was among those who had publicly complained about being denied access to the material. He said Americans must “understand the rules under which a president may make these consequential decisions.”

Wyden said Obama had “assured me that all of the documents concerning the legal opinions on the targeted killing of Americans will immediately be made available” to the intelligence committees.

By “made available” I’m sure that they mean that the Congressmen can look at it in a locked room, take no notes, and not discuss it with their staff.

That’s how they roll.

This is Called a Back Loaded Bribe

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The soon to be ex-Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner plans to write a book:

Timothy Geithner, who played a lead role battling the global financial crisis both at the U.S. Treasury and New York Federal Reserve, is planning to write a book on the U.S. response, a spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Geithner, who was the longest-serving member of President Barack Obama’s economic team when he stepped down as secretary of the Treasury last month, is credited with helping to calm the financial storm that swept through Wall Street in 2007-2009.

But his support for bailing out big banks was controversial and many critics have accused him of doing too little for Main Street. In 2009, some lawmakers called for his resignation.

His spokeswoman said he had not started writing the book and will meet with publishers soon.

Any guess as to the size of his advance?

I’m guessing that it will be 7 figures.

Say what you will about the banksters, but they do tend to throw a few crumbs to their evil minions.

Stupidest Idea in Maryland

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While Maryland is not generally considered a good government state, witness the regular indictments of Maryland politicos, but the Prince George’s County Board of Education takes the cake:

There are some absolutely ridiculous situations created by the fact that all creative works are automatically granted a copyright on being put into a fixed form. Mostly, we just ignore these situations, because the vast majority of them never matter. But, as copyright has become more and more ridiculous, some people are beginning to start to make use of the stupid fact that all kinds of things can be “owned” that probably shouldn’t be “ownable.” Take, for example, school work. If a student creates something, it is covered by copyright, though most people never really consider or care about that. However, the board of education for Prince George [sic] County in Maryland is apparently considering a new “copyright policy” in which all students and staff would have to assign all of those copyrights over to the school system itself.

(emphasis original)

I don’t see how they have a leg to stand on with the children, who are not employees, and so could not be seen as producing work for hire.

This is nucking futs.

Facepalm

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Yes, considering the disaster that was the Israeli rump state in Lebanon, the idea that Israel is planning to establish a “buffer zone” in Syria does not bode well:

ISRAEL is considering creating a buffer zone reaching up to 10 miles inside Syria to protect itself from fundamentalist rebels on the other side of the border.

 The proposal, which has been drawn up by the military and presented to Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, is intended to secure the 47-mile border against a growing Islamist threat if President Bashar al-Assad’s embattled regime loses control of the area.

 The buffer would be modelled on the Lebanese security zone, in which the Israeli defence forces patrolled jointly with the South Lebanon army, a militia, up to 16 miles inside Lebanon from 1985 to 2000.

Yeah, and that whole Lebanese buffer zone worked so f%$#ing well.  derf

This is insanity.

Considering the Privacy Agreement They Have for Me

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I have no sympathy for all for the bank executives who had their personal data posted online:

Following attacks on U.S. government websites last weekend, Anonymous seems to have made a new “Operation Last Resort” .gov website strike Sunday night.

Anonymous appears to have published login and private information from over 4,000 American bank executive accounts in the name of its new Operation Last Resort campaign, demanding U.S. computer crime law reform.

A spreadsheet has been published on a .gov website allegedly containing login information and credentials, IP addresses, and contact information of American bank executives.

If true, it could be that Anonymous has released banker information that could be connected to Federal Reserve computers, including contact information and cell phone numbers for U.S. bank Presidents, Vice Presidents, COO’s Branch Managers, VP’s and more.

This has been your moment of schadenfreude.

I wonder what Blankfein’s home phone number is.

Good

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Jenny McCarthy has been has been dropped from a cancer fundraiser because of her anti-vaccine bullsh%$:

The Ottawa Cancer Foundation has reversed its decision to hire actress and model Jenny McCarthy to headline its one-day fitness fundraiser Bust A Move.

In a statement released late Friday afternoon, the foundation said McCarthy would be replaced by Canadian celebrity fitness instructor and former CFL player Tommy Europe.

The statement said that since the announcement of McCarthy’s appearance, “…attention has shifted away from breast cancer awareness and fundraising.”

On Tuesday, McCarthy was revealed as Bust A Move’s guest fitness instructor, which caused many to question why an organization supporting cancer research would invite someone with a history of promoting erroneous ideas about health and disease.

Despite reams of scientific research to the contrary, McCarthy writes and speaks publicly about the supposed link between child vaccination and autism. The former Playboy Playmate also blames her son’s autism on vaccinations.

Word of McCarthy’s appearance at a charity cancer event sparked a #dropjenny hashtag on Twitter, which generated many comments about whether the actress was a credible choice. Similar online debate occurred on Bust A Move’s Facebook page.

I’m not saying that Jenny McCarthy should not be able to work because of her beliefs, but allowing her to be a spokesperson for anything remotely medical is like having António Egas Moniz (the inventor of the prefrontal lobotomy) as a spokesman for psychological counseling.

Deep Thought

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As I won’t through the scanner at the airport security check point, I had to hold my hands above my head and together, making a letter”A”.

I was REALLY tempted to start with the hand symbols for “Y”, “M”. and “C”, but I didn’t.

I figured that my homage to the Village People result in a strip search.

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