While, I admit, you gotta be pretty dumb to share copyrighted mateterial of an unreleased album on your blogsite…this sounds like a massive waste of tax payer money to send the FBI to arrest an idiot.

LOS ANGELES — Federal authorities say they have arrested a blogger suspected of streaming songs from Guns N’ Roses unreleased album, “Chinese Democracy,” on his Web site.

FBI agents arrested 27-year-old Kevin Cogill on Wednesday morning on suspicion of violating federal copyright laws. Federal authorities say Cogill posted nine unreleased Guns N’ Roses songs on his Web site in June.

The songs were later removed.

According to an arrest affidavit, Cogill admitted to agents that he posted the songs on his Web site.
“Chinese Democracy” is a much anticipated — and repeatedly delayed — new album by Guns N’ Roses that is more than 10 years in the making.

Just when you thought consumers might be getting the upperhand (although we do when it comes to PR), the RIAA wins a case against someone who formatted his hard drive.  Seriously, I’ve reformatted my hard drive many times, can you really link a format of your to covering your tracks? Lets talk about the number of people who reformat their drives because of Viruses or because of Windows issues.

One of the most closely-watched copyright infringement lawsuits brought by the RIAA appears to be coming to a screeching halt, much to the music industry’s delight. A judge ruled Monday that a defendant had willfully and intentionally destroyed evidence of his P2P activities after being notified of pending legal action by the RIAA. Furthermore, since it was done in bad faith, it “therefore warrants appropriate sanctions.”

After that ruling, it appeared as though Atlantic v. Howell was headed for a bench trial this fall, but at the end of July, the record labels filed a motion seeking judgment in their favor due to what they characterized as Howell’s attempts to cover his tracks. According to the RIAA’s brief, Howell destroyed evidence on four separate occasions after first receiving the prelitigation settlement letter and later being served with the lawsuit. The RIAA’s forensics experts found that Howell uninstalled KaZaA and deleted everything in the shared folder, reformatted his hard drive, downloaded and used a file-wiping program, and then nuked all the KaZaA logs on his PC. “Defendant’s intentional spoliation of computer evidence significantly prejudices Plaintiffs because it puts the most relevant evidence of their claim permanently beyond their reach,” argued the RIAA. “The deliberate destruction… by itself, compels the conclusion that such evidence supported Plaintiffs’ case.”

Ok so lets forget about legal proceedings, lets talk about privacy.  Say you just wanted to erase your data on your drive before you sold it to someone because you had company informtion on it, or your financials.  Don’t format and use some program like that.  Format it and then write 00000’s to the drive.  Not only that, if you’re selling the computer and you have sensitive information do what all government institutions do: Destroy the drive.  Cause really, do you want this to happen?

Via Slashdot.

“Well, Phase I of the RIAA’s misguided pursuit of an innocent, disabled Oregon woman, Atlantic v. Andersen, has finally drawn to a close, as the RIAA was forced to pay Ms. Andersen $107,951, representing the amount of her attorneys fee judgment plus interest. But as some have pointed out, reimbursement for legal fees doesn’t compensate Ms. Andersen for the other damages she’s sustained. And that’s where Phase II comes in, Andersen v. Atlantic. There the shoe is on the other foot, and Tanya is one doing the hunting, as she pursues the record companies and their running dogs for malicious prosecution. Should be interesting.”

Hell yeah it’s going to be interesting.  I hope that others jump in, and sue the bejesus out of the RIAA and their insane, futile quest to put down the consumer beause they are trying to protect their interests.  Your days are numbered.

Well some of you may have been privy to the nominations, some of you not. But its not suprising the ones that were nominated.

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Philip Seymour Hoffman - CAPOTE
Terrence Howard - HUSTLE & FLOW
Heath Ledger - BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
Joaquin Phoenix - WALK THE LINE
David Strathairn - GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK.

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
George Clooney - SYRIANA
Matt Dillon - CRASH
Paul Giamatti - CINDERELLA MAN
Jake Gyllenhaal - BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
William Hurt - A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Judi Dench - MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS
Felicity Huffman - TRANSAMERICA
Keira Knightley - PRIDE & PREJUDICE
Charlize Theron - NORTH COUNTRY

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY
BATMAN BEGINS
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK.
MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA
THE NEW WORLD

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
CAPOTE
CRASH
GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK.
MUNICH
Reese Witherspoon - WALK THE LINE

ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES
(ORIGINAL SCORE)
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
THE CONSTANT GARDENER
MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA
MUNICH
PRIDE & PREJUDICE

And of course the coveted best picture….

BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
CAPOTE
CRASH
GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK.
MUNICH

What’s not suprising is that Backdoor Mountain (er did I say that?) Brokeback Mountain was nominated for many of these. WHY?

Lets see, the majority of hollywood types that are artsy are gay maybe? Oh wait, Jewish and Gay, sorry. So lets talk about this movie. We have the American ICON of a cowboy, defined so much by a man who is synomous with cowboy and western movies - John Wayne. We have the spaghetti westerns with Clint Eastwood, (music by Ennio Morricones) also very iconic. We have Robert Duvall from Lonesome Dove… the list goes on.

Now, let’s fuck it all up and show the ICON of American culture a cowboy image that has been defined by great men and then let these two cowboys ass rape each other on the big screen and show them holding hands in really nice scenery in Oregon - which it was actually filmed in Canada. What a shitty year in movies.

I can only hope that Crash wins for best picture because it certainly earns it for portraying an image of current society across racial boundries. And cross your fingers for Paul Giamatti for Best Supporting Actor, lord knows he deserves an award, especially after he got stiffed last year for the Sideways thing.

Click the extended entry for some other thoughts..

Read the rest of this entry »

Ok, so I was having lunch with a friend the other day and the topic turned to the impending yearly masochistic crap fest that is Christmas. All this time I thought I was the only one that loathed this time of year, but as it turns out, there are others among us. So, I’m sending up a signal flare, a rallying sign to call the others out of the closet to speak with one voice and say: “We may not have a choice, but damn it, we drink this eggnog with ill-disguised quiet disdain.”

Don’t get me wrong, there are things that I like about Christmas: caroling, chocolates and turkey to name but a few, but there is evil in this seeming banality. So for your pleasure I submit my MASTER LIST of the top things I hate about Christmas.

1) Buying Presents. Let me be specific: it’s not that I dislike spending money on the people that I care about, but there is this second idea that the present you buy must embody everything you feel about that person and if that isn’t pressure I don’t know what is. I don’t have enough time, energy or brain power left in me to come up with THE ONE gift that defines my love for you, so I hope you like the toaster you’re getting.
2) Receiving Presents. On the flip side of this, I don’t want my friends to waste their time, and energy trying to find that perfect present for me. I tell them every year, if you really feel the need to get me something, get me a bottle of whisky or a good book. Invariably I get a toaster. And then, I have to look happy about it. “No, seriously, this is the EXACT model toaster I’ve always wanted. Or at least it was until you gave me one last year…”
3) Egg Nog. This should go without the need for discussion.
4) My Grandmothers. Yes, I’m probably going straight to hell for not liking my grandmothers, but never the less hate rears its wrinkly bald head. Never in my life have I met two women more bitter, punishing or judgmental than these two. No interface that they have ever had with me has ever shown any affection what so ever, and in the end I just stop feeling like a productive member of society. Honest to god, my brain doesn’t even process the words anymore, it just translates them as “blah blah blah, you’re not good enough, blah blah, you never will be”. And Christmas is the joyous time when I have no choice but to spend time with them to keep the family peace. Ba rump ba bum bum…
5) Egg Nog. Ok, maybe it does deserve an explanation, it’s 30 proof snot people! Stop drinking it!
6) Christmas trees. They are a bitch to set up, serve no real purpose and shed. It’s like a prickley haired pet sans the unconditional love. Here’s a hint, if you only decorate one side, it tips over, really. Break an ornament and pick red foil covered glass out of your foot for a year. That truly is the gift that keeps giving all year long.
7) Wrapping Presents. You wrap them then someone else unwraps them. Why? Just, why? So it’s a surprise? It’s a toaster, it’s ALWAYS a toaster. Christmas Day. Birthday of Christ, I think not. According to the bible, Christ was probably born in the second week of March. Why December 25th? It’s the day pagans traditionally celebrated the religion of Sol Invictus. It’s called religious transmogrification. It’s easier to convert people to your religion if you incorporate bits of their religion.

I don’t know, I guess it all seems like it combines to shroud our eyes from the true meaning of Christmas: yearly retail windfalls and personal financial chaos.

So, Merry Christmas, no one deserves it like you do.