It’s not that new an idea. Johnny Ramone was a conservative. I consider D.I.Y. to be conservative. I was a fan of anarchy until I realized that idiots win in a lawless society. As James Madison wrote, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.” Neither of those being the case, we need some (hopefully limited) government. Anyway, this is Dana Loesh trying to make the case for punk rock conservatism. I don’t agree with it all but she does make the important point of not loving music for ideologies’ sake. Regardless, “Guns of Brixton” by the Clash.
If you’re confused about increased revenues resulting from decreased tax rates, please read up on the Laffer Curve. I’ve got plenty of issues with Bush, but, hey, if you’re going to spend too much, at least he increased revenue to offset part of his debt.
Uncommon Knowledge is a conservative webcast from the Hoover Institute. Rob Long (Cheers) and Harry Shearer (The Simpsons) are friends on (fairly) opposite ends of the political spectrum. Fascinating discussion covering friendships with disparate politics, politics in Hollywood, The Simpsons, and much more.
Note: I’m mocking AGW fanatics. Live a pre-industrial lifestyle if you want, but don’t enforce it on me or write me off as a “denier.”
Never happier than when philosophizing on behalf of slavery, (John) Calhoun argued that science had indisputably proven that Southern slaves suffered from fewer debilitating diseases — “deafness, blindness, insanity, and idiocy” — than free blacks and that they had “improved greatly in every respect, in number, comfort, intelligence, and morals.”
When I was a teenager, compact discs were brand new, it was mostly vinyl and cassettes. I had a voracious appetite for new music that outpaced what I was willing to spend. I would borrow friends’ music and “dub” it to cassette with no guilt. I would also make mixes for people. This did help the artists some, as if I really liked a band or album I had dubbed or discovered on a mix tape, I would pick something up by them. In retrospect, stealing whole albums was wrong, but sharing mixed tapes, is a little more nebulous. Not only is the creative assembly of the mix-maker involved, the chosen songs could act as advertisements for the act’s albums. Piracy back then was low quality bootleg cassettes.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Everything is digital now, save for the scattered vintage audiophile. You can get almost anything for free if you know where to look (I don’t, but that’s my understanding). The MPAA, RIAA, etc. are still wresting with piracy and are failing to find a nuanced approach to the issue.
Bill Maher has a point here (did I just write that?) : There is a moral dimension to this (and Bill Maher is talking about morality?). Matt Lewis also has a point: That SOPA would apparently allow the feds to take down the Daily Caller because a commenter on the site adds content that infringes on a copyright before even investigating. Giants such as Facebook and YouTube may have the resources to comply, but the overhead for start-ups would be crippling.
I think there should be steps taken to curb piracy, but my understanding of SOPA shows that media giants and legislators are still out of touch with media consumers. I agree with BigFurHat’s conclusion.
Ultimately the best comment was by Jennifer Granholm, “the issue has to be addressed with a scalpel, not an ax.”
