Bloggers Union?
Some left-leaning bloggers want to form one in order to “receive health insurance, conduct collective bargaining or even set professional standards.”
The Coming Software Patent Apocalypse
Interesting post about software patents. Explains that even companies that oppose software patents, such as Oracle Corporation and Red Hat, still file for and receive software patents—they must do so for defensive purposes. Of course, this disproportionately penalizes smaller companies, as with much federal legislation such as minimum wage, FLSA, and pro-union laws. The post notes that “The fashion industry ...
The Can’t-Do Government
On The Washington Post, John McQuaid has determined that the United States is now the can’t-do nation. He starts by mentioning the recent bridge collapse in Minneapolis and wonders whether there has “ever been a period in our history when so many American plans and projects have, literally or figuratively, collapsed? In both grand and humble endeavors, the United States can no longer be relied upon to succeed or even muddle through.”
The Trouble with David Friedman’s “Rationality”
David Friedman’s book Price Theory defines rationality as the application of correct means to human ends. writes Dmitry Chernikov. Friedman further assumes that people are mostly rational. Is Friedman’s assumption of rationality justified? I don’t think that it is either true or necessary. Acting individuals and entrepreneurs do make mistakes due to uncertainty of the future. Yes, the nature of reality is such that errors are penalized (unless you work for a government agency). But the disincentive to making errors does not eliminate errors entirely. Nor is it possible a priori to predict who will act successfully and at what endeavors.
The Unfairness Doctrine
Various Democratic politicians, including Diane Feinstein, are considering reviving the fairness doctrine to rein in talk radio’s “unfair bias.” Unfortunately, it is just the latest abuse of a perennial political weasel word—fair.
The Candidates and the Media
Revisiting some problems with patents
I was recently talking with a very intelligent fellow patent attorney, and we got around to the subject of policy issues. One thing led to another and he discovered, and was a bit shocked by, myt opposition to patent and copyright. He was interested in some further information on the topics we discussed so I compiled an email with some information. As this corrals some useful links, material, and arguments about patents, I’ve provided an edited version below.
The Principled Case Against Patents
The Fallacies of Public Finance
Theory and History
Well, the anti-”piracy” bit didn’t work, did it?
A new survey, reported by the Telegraph, shows that nearly every teen on the planet is a music pirate, and the reality is slowing dawning on recording company execs that they need to find a way to serve the consumer rather than depend the government to protect their state-enforced monopolies.
