I had a conversation with some co-workers recently about how some neighborhoods use intimidation and coercion to make some of their denizens comply to their standards or force them to move out. Some of the more egregious incidents were with Arabs in a white community or a Christian in a liberal community. Anyways, the reason I bring this up is because the housing that was so apposed by the wealthy community in NE Ann Arbor is finally near completion. To those who read my blog, I mentioned this case in September of 2003.

There was a 1999 TV movie I saw where a African American family in Detroit, MI was taken to court because a deed restriction was in place barring blacks from owning property in an exclusively white community in 1941. They were allowed to move in because the father's light complexion led them to beleive he wasn't African American. The Supreme Court in 1947 eventually ruled that states could not enforce racially restrictive covenants. However the closing notes in that movie stated that even to that day, there were locations in the United States where such restrictions still existed. What this boils down to say is that even though such things are impermissible in writing or creed, they still persist in actions. The supposed progressives of Ann Arbor are no exception.

So I was thinking: maybe in the spirit of the actions of my community members in 2003, I should go around door-to-door asking people to sign a Welcome petition ... oops I mean card or to join a Greeting commitee ... err party to welcome all the new people who will be soon be our neighbors.

Posted in: Life, Politics,

Permanently! So Paramount has finallized that Star Trek:Enterprise will be cancelled and this 4rth season will be it's last. I must shed a tear ... of joy. I cannot emphasize how much disappointment this show brought me. The reasons may vary but the truth was that it just not as good as the 3 (technically 4) series preceding it. Some may ask: Why then did you ever watch it? Simple: obligation.

There is a deeper effect to all of this. Enterprise recently moved to friday nights and the SciFi Channel premeired 2 new shows last fall - also on friday! So each weekend I had to watch Enterprise, Stargate:SG1, Stargate:Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica. Now my burden is lighter: 1 less show. And to make things even better, all SciFi Channel shows have had their season finales. I can finally get some rest and do some work now. Ummm...

Posted in: Television,

I was doing my usual rounds on the forums. Usually I look for people to help with their computer problems while I slyly demonstrate my technical prowess over the ignorant users. I found a help topic where I was fairly knowledgeable: video drivers on linux.

A user asked for help and some people gave semi-useful comments. Someone gave the best possible answer (referring them to my site) so I felt a reply wasn't needed. However near the end, someone else had written that the user should visit his site and click on his tutorial, quote: "I can't make it much easier". Usually I compare other people's suggestions to see how they pale in comparison to mine, so I followed the link. Lo and behold his suggestions were just as good as mine - to the letter. How so? Well he simply copied everything from my site and put his signature on it. In fact he had 5 such tutorials, 4 of which were copied verbatim from my site and none of which even mentioned me by name or link. How respectful.

Restraining from any unnecessary profanity or calls for justice, I simply posted a reply in the original forum, I asked how could HE make it any easier, when in fact all the content and work was composed and researched by me. I also posted a comment on his site explaining that I do not appreciate the plagiarism. And so began the bizarre exchange.

The plagiarizer felt upset that I made public accusations and thought I was greedy for expecting credit for my work. Oh the horror, he was so burdened by all the time it took him to cut'n'paste that it was too much work to link back to me. And his simple solution: reword everything I wrote so it looks likes he wrote it. Wow, how brilliant. Don't they teach the purpose of a bibliography in this country? Anyways I stuck to my guns and made clear that those actions would be unacceptable. Of course I didn't have the infringer's email initially so I had to correspond online in public forum, while taking a barrage of vulgarities and profanities from the locals (his buddies).

I talked to my Law School buddy in Cali and asked him what the copyright law said. Basically I don't need to state "Copyright" for my work to be mine. So I finally emailed the plagiarizer and the owner of the site explaining that I want my content removed or they should add a link and my name on each page stolen and I added that I was "within my rights to seek legal action". Would I? I doubt it, I don't want to mess up some kid. Afterall his site was for video games and I assumed this was due to brash immaturity or lack of education. I told him: 2 weeks!

His reply: the work isn't mine because I don't have legally notorized proof. This is after he already admitted to copying everything publicly on his site. And the kicker: I've stressed him to lose time with his wife and child. Please excuse me for expecting all of 5 minutes that it would have taken to comply with my legitimate request in the first place! Of course I stayed steady: 2 weeks. He gave in for the most part and deleted 3 of the 4 main copied sections. ... After 2 weeks I wrote him again complaining about the 4rth page. All he had done was rename everything, equivalent to having a "Sorny VDV Player". Anyways he didn't reply and after I gave him the ethics argument, I forgot about it. A week or 2 later, I decided to see if the page was still there. It wasn't! But not because he removed it, someone either hacked his entire site, or somebody logged in and deleted everything. Honest to goodness, it wasn't me! I couldn't help but to laugh at the situation (non-sadistically of course).

I consider myself a fair person (yes, its fair for me to say that). And in the end I wouldn't have done anything that would have caused any serious difficulties to this person and I don't care to intentionally humiliate him, however I cannot help thinking that he got what he deserved. Even if it wasn't from me.

Posted in: Website, Internet,

I feel compelled to note the passing of Pope John Paul. May he rest in peace.

We run like a river

Run to the sea

We run like a river to the sea

Posted in: Life,

An opinion is an opinion? Right? What if one opinion is accepted by majority, then what? ... So I'm reading Bill O'Reilly's April 1rst Talkings Point Memo and he, like most news stations, was giving his view of the Terri Schiavo case:

Now all over America, people have chosen sides, which is your right to do. "Talking Points" hopes that you base your opinion on provable facts, not speculation and emotion. New scientific poll by FOX News/Opinion Dynamics indicates the following.

If you read further what this scientific polls asks you will find 4 questions: (1) If it were you, would you want the feeding tube removed? (2) Could Terri improve? (3) Who would you choose as Terri's gaurdian? and (4) Do you think Terri told her husband that she did not wish to live in such a state?

Now the first question is pure opinion and it is a valid question when considering each one's personal life, however the remaing 3 are just plain stupid questions. How does a poll of seemingly scientifically sampled people determine the validity of one's actions? Or even medical issues for that matter? I don't understand why people think she could improve? It was permanent brain damage. Isn't it wrong to let someone beleive there is hope when there really isn't? I can understand that family members couldn't let go, but wasn't she already gone? How does a poll help me know if she could have improved?

And what bothers me more is attacking the establishment of gaurdianship and the basics of that relationship. If this woman told her husband something, how can he even prove it? She could have told him countless things how can people possibly know what she said to him? It's almost as if they were never married in the first place and some random person was entrusted with this woman. That marriage was a binding establishment ever prior to courts reaffirming it.

I'm not saying what happened was wonderful or that I liked the outcome. However I do think this opinionated fury fueled by media attention and innocent arrogance really hurts society as a whole. The situation was depressing, but the fact that people cared was nice. I just hope that this case's influence on science, life and law isn't based out of opinion or scorn but rather understanding and rational thought.

Posted in: Philosophy, Television, Politics,