i think historically the idea has been to simply enact laws to please our allies and then not enforce them. So despite having some really draconian copyright laws we've never actually had a problem with them. Very few people even realise what kind of copyright laws we have.

But the real problem is that the laws are already in place, so that if we do start getting attention from the multinationals, and the gov't caves (as it unquestionably will), then we are all set up to be shitcanned.

so which answer was right? i'm confused

"the company purchased a 3.5” floppy disk factory in 2001, displaying a disturbing dearth of technological savvy"

This is my favorite part.
honestly, what the christ?

#1: i would, it's the same sort of 'you can only use our content on our device, even though you're the one paying. oh and you can't change it to work better either' mentality we're seeing all over the place now.

this is really exciting. the amount of information gained from just dinosaur bones is amazing, i can't imaging how much this could advance our understanding

Dissolving a controversial and dysfunctional committee and reforming it under a different name is an old and time-honored method of deflecting criticism. But to put the chair of the dissolved committee in charge of the shiny new one seems like a huge and deliberate fuck you to the dissenting membership.
they didn't even try to be politic about it

This is so disappointing. what is so hard about making a good ebook reader? It seems like every company that makes one purposefully cripples it.

Everybodys list of what a good ebook reader should be is pretty much the same and has been for years;

-no drm. this is a dealbreaker.
-must read (or at least be able to run third party software that reads) all existing ebook formats prc, lit, rtf, txt, html, pdf
-must be less than $150, or alternatively have free content
-removable media (SD card, flash, whatever)

Basically all i really want is a PDA with an epaper display. not even a good pda; it doesn't even have to run anything other than ebook reader software. SO a crappy pda with epaper display and a decent amount of removable memory.
All these things exist, and are separately used in devices that are pretty cheap. But nobody wants to put them all together in a useable fashion. The only part that might possibly be why its so expensive is the epaper. But i keep reading articles about how cheap it is to manufacture, so what gives?

I can afford $400 for an ebook reader, but i cant justify $400 for an ebook reader. I really desperately want a good e-ink ebook reader, but i just can't justify spending that much money when there are quality alternatives (like paper books)

I didn't notice the throat tearing bit and thought this was a dreamlike love scene.
...following that thought, the smoke rings are reminiscent of Murakami's "My Lonesome Cowboy"

I've read almost all of these stories already, i think.
It's a pretty great selection, and while i'm probably not going to be buying it myself, I would highly recommend it to others.

thats awesome. i wonder what the backstory is? Was an artist commissioned to create some public art and did this as a subtle jab at the TSA? i know of a few cases where that sort of thing has happened.
The scary option is if the management knowingly went for the big brother decor.