Steve's barking; I didn't realize I was a thief (of intelelectual property)

I didn't realize I was a thief (of intellectual property).
I know now?
How do I know.
The supreme court tells me so.
In it's six to three decision against Aereo I do believe it implies that one can not record over the air programing that can be played at a later date a later date unless one pays for it the the provider of that content.
I've had a VHS for 30 years and in the past I've recorded shows, and have seen them at a later date.
Now if one takes this a step further one can say I'm stealing intellectual property.
It seems to me that the only reason for Aereo was to take what has always been free, and having someone pay for clarity and rebroadcasting on devises that aren't traditional televisions.
Maybe those who don't use no traditional devises aren't stealing even though record for future viewing.

Now that I've gotten this ruling off my chest, let me contemplate why am I paying for something that my next door neighbor who doesn't have cable or a dish gets for free?
Why did the FCC let the over the air broadcast companies charge the cable and dish companies for their programing which in turn charges me. If the over the air broadcast feels that it needs the wired and dish household money so bad then they should give up their right to broadcast on that spectrum.
I was kind of under the impression that over the air broadcasting was a privilege to serve a community, if it makes one pay and the other gets that service for free it's not serving the community equal.

If for some idiotic reason someone palagerizes this blog should I be paid?
No, no, no, I gave it away for free.

steve's barking; what would Scroodge McDuck do?

What would Scrooge McDuck do if he didn't have to pay taxes?
Would he be generous andstill give to charities? Would he give to hospitals and libraries?
Does he give to cultural instatutions out of the goodness of his heart or does he do it for tax right off, after all every one knows that Mister McDuck doesn't like what the government does with his tax money. At least part of the money that he would have gone to taxes goes to what he likes and loves.
If he didn't have to pay taxes  would he still help the hospitals, the arts, and the libraries.
Just thinking.

Steve barking; let's have a nation jackass day

In the US we have days to honor just about everything and everybody.
Things like cup cake day and ice cream cone day.We celebrate Pit bull day and glutton eating hot frankfurters day ( this is celebrated in Coney Island in case you didn't know).
In New York we give special parades for special people, we have ( name a country) heritage parades,
We have a several gay pride parades, and ghost and a goblin parade. In San Fransico they have a S&M street faire. All I'm asking for is day to recognize the greatist majority in this country, more then straight people and gay people combined, that jackasses or as I said to the idiot who cut me off on the highway today, you A hole. An A hole is a jackass only by another name.
The thing about A holes is that the're just like werewolves  ther're normal most of the time but come at certain times of the month and the you have to be very careful of them.
Everyone knows a jackass, in fact most if not all the people we know are at one time or another are jackasses. I know for a fact I've turned into A hole many times in my life, and if your honest with yourself  you've probably been a jackass too at least once or twice, so is't it about time we gave a day for all of us. Let's hear it for National Jackass (ass hole) day.


*In this country there are straight people, gay people, bi people ans asexual people. That's how I can state more then straight people and gay people combined.

Steve's barking; The country of New Texas.

Never heard of the country of New Texas? That's because it doesn't exist.
I was just thinking let's try a social experiment an create new country for all those libertarians out there. Texas, being the largest state with anti-government sentiment. Texas has a industries, including farming, energy, and manufacturing. It has the Gulf of Mexico which can be used as drinking water and farming with desalting of the sea water.
The US would give the new country of  New Texas 500 billion dollars and 1/50 of the gold reserves held by the federal reserve.
Those who elect to live in the new country of New Texas would not get Medicare from the United States, and as far as Social Security is concerned , those who already get will still get it, those who don't will not unless the government of New Texas has some sort of Social Security and has a reciprocal agreement with the United States.
Every five years New Texas would have a chance to return as a state of the United States with the last chance 20 years after it leaves.That's four chances to opt back into being a state in the United States.
First opportunity, they get to keep the money but have to give back the gold. The second opportunity they have to pay back the 500 billion. The third and fourth opportunity New Texas would have to buy it's way back.
The country of New Texas would be a great way to find out if libertarian (anarchy) democracy really works.

Scotland may leave Great Britain, counties are talking of leaving the Euro Zone. Middle Eastern counties, forget about it, so why not a spot in the US.

Steve's barking; rent stablization in NYC

This year in NYC for the first time in my memory there might not be an increase in the monthly rent of rent stabilized apartments. This is great news for those who have fixed income and low to middle income who live in those rent stabilized apartments, not so great news for the owners of those apartment buildings. Many in the rent stabilized can barely afford the rent that they pay. Many of the owners of  these building can barely  afford to keep the buildings up. This is a situation were both sides have great arguments.
The city wants to have affordable housing so it needs rent stabilization as a large part of  the program.
It can not afford to lose affordable housing stock. One would think that the city's government would give tax breaks, reduce water bills and other incentives as they do for developers of new housing.
They should do it because it the right thing to do. Even if  they wouldn't lose one apartment with out breaks for the owners of these apartment buildings.
This would make it a win, win for everyone.

Steve's barking at trying to understand the fear of the freed Taliban

I'm trying to understand the fear of the the five freed Taliban members in a 5 for 1 prisoner swap for (Sgt) Bergdahle.
Let me try to understand from what I do know.
Afghanistan was ruled by the Taliban in 2001.
The Taliban harbored Al Qaeda.
Al Qaeda was the terrorist group that attacked us on 9/11/2001.
To reiterate Al Qaeda (People of Mid Eastern Extraction, not Asian) attacked us.
To retaliate we (rightfully) invaded Afghanistan.
Is it the suggestion of those who are afraid of the freed Taliban that they will attack Americans on our soil?
( Our soil includes Embassies and military bases).
They haven't done so before, so they're going to start now?
Is it the suggestion that we're never leaving Afghanistan so they create a risk for our men and women over there? Is that the problem?

Steve's barking:Money can't buy you love

What's to be learned from a Brat beating a Cantor in the Virginia Republican primary?
The main thing I took away from the victory of Brat over Cantor is money can't buy you love.
I don't read much else into it.

Steve's barking at gun controll in those old western movies

I remember many an old western when the cowboys would come into town the Marshall would take their guns and tell them they would get them back when they left town.
In some of those old movies the gunslinger would come into town and the Marshall would take his gun.
In other movies drunk would start shooting up the salon, the Marshall would come in, smack him on the head and take his gun away, throwing him in jail and only giving him his gun when he left town.
If these movies were made today there would be a whole slew of people complaining about that left wing Hollywood elite even though those movie scenarios were based on fact.
If Marshall Earp asked the cowboys coming into Dodge for their weapons, the cowboys would take there case to court, that darn Marshall Earp is trying to take our constitutional rights away.

We have a problem in reading with reading in this country, just think about it, who understand the meaning of the phrase a well regulated militia .

Steve's barking; What's wrong with the VA?

What's wrong with the VA?
Simple answer....It's a bureaucracy, the same as GE.
Nobody wants to think that the private sector is the same as the government sector (well most people anyway) but it is.
By all indications that in the VA department heads look over their shoulders and make sure that no one makes waves. Put on a happy face, brush the bad tidings under the rug so they wouldn't look bad. Do you think that GM's department heads have the same idea?
When you look at the private sector and the public sector one has to ask is protecting one's a** a human trait?
I have another rhetorical question, does a bureaucracy hinder inventiveness more then it helps?

I have something else to ponder, this more about government bureaucracy then the private sector.
Does congress setting a humongous amount of rules begging for failure?
Wouldn't it have been better if the government stipulated in it's contracts time frames, and having  companies  accountable for over runs. While I'm at it, holding companies accountable to their contracts to deliver what you said you would or be fined to the extreme of forfeiture of all monies from the contract. Lying on what you can deliver lets' bad companies drive out good. My inerts (gut feeling) tells me that's  the major screw up computerizing the paper work of the VA hospitals.

Lets not let congress off the hook, The VA needs more doctors, congress sets the budget.

Bw afraid of those saying this is how we have always  done it.
This goes for private companies as well as the public sector.

 

Steve's barking: The fat guy at the buffet line (Super Rich)

Why do I think that there are too many super rich  behave like that fat guy at the church buffet line who pushes his way to the front of the line, takes three plates of food, puts it down on the table, then pushes his way to the front of the line again and grabs more food. When he hears gripping from others that there wasn't enough to eat he seems bewildered after all there was enough for him. In fact he throws most of what he took away.

Steve's barking; rising energy exploration raises all in the economy?

The saying goes, rising tide raises all boats.
Rising energy exploration raises all in the economy.
Is that a true?
Well it certainly helped in the Reagan years. Probably was one of the main reason we had a brief recession.
Russia seemed to be having real economic problems until they started selling gas and oil.
Even the US today things would be a lot bleaker if it wasn't for gas explorations in the east and in the Dakotas. Think of all the prefab homes that have to be built in other parts of the country. think of all that money that is be spent on drilling equipment from other parts of the country. Think of all that money that's now being spent on cars that are made in other parts of the country.

I was wondering to myself why aren't things worse then what they are, perhaps it's due to energy exploration, perhaps not?