Bobknowsall

A prodigous group of American citizens have been watching with interest the recent movement associated with the SOPA and PIPA bills. We collectively feel the wording of those Bills portends detriment to the Ninth Bill of Rights as amended to the Constitution of the United States of America. That particular Bill, in reference to its relation to it’s sisters, implies the rights of the citizens extend beyond literal interpretation of the Bills and extends comfort to the free in a sequestered world. In effect, in passage of these Bills the Second Bill of Rights will be abused by the Senate in the order of contradiction of an initial approval by a two-thirds affirmation of the first Ten Bills. The Ninth Bill of Rights drives this home.
In short and despite the fact that at the initial composition of those Bills over two centuries past there could have been no foresight of the existence of such a speech medium as the ethereal electronic internet of communication the SOPA and PIPA threaten the very basis of our rights as a people.
To look to ancient Rome as a model and cognate of Lex America, agnate detritions of the twelve basic rules of the roman consititution implied the existence of a deleterious series of events that were defined internal and burgeoning weaknesses in the basis of that great government. We need to learn from that history.

Those changes were symptomatic. However, they signaled the beginning of the end for that great society.
God forbid that should be in any way a similarity or a relationship found by the drafting and passage of these new Bills in America.
I feel the SOPA and PIPA are dangerous and at best require a complete rewording and presentation to the American people as if we were truly the self-governors Lincoln so eloquently described–a government of, by, and for her people.
In short, I suggest this sort of rule-changing should go before the people as a referendum at the national level before the House and Senate are found unecessarily cuplpable of sweeping negative changes prior to the next elections.
I fear passing those Bills in the Senate would be detrimental to the political careers of any and all involved. I do not wish that to be so for our Maine Senators who have labored so long and so successfully in the best interest of your constituents.
Respectfully,

Bobknowsall.com

Sorry – no eye candy on this one.

We have been reading with interest the misadventures of the U.S. Congress regarding government takeover of the internet in the U.S.

The U.S. is supposed to be the nation of the free, the bastion of democracy, the goal of human government that would dare approach Utopia. It was this way, for a bit – after WWII. The U.S. was to be the protector of nations, defender of Democracy, keeper of the Gold Standard. We screwed up, for sure, and we are about to pay dearly for it.

In a major and further step toward Fascism, the U.S. government – home of the free, the brave, the courageous – has decided to turn the eye of suspicion toward everyone who dares communicate online in any way. All emails blogs, links, ISPs, Internet registrars, correspondences, photographs, movies…everything…is  now being monitored and picked apart, looking for terrorists under every unturned stone. The supercomputer and the parsing and deciphering programs being used are like no other.

So — we have decided to add a little assininity to the assinine, satire bent toward the right targets (and the left).

Congress has passed the “SOPA”: the Stop Online Piracy Act, or H.R. 3261. Much has been said by those against the act, which opens what is essentially full-bore wiretapping on every U.S. citizen, organization, group, and corporation. There is a long list of those opposed, all U. S. citizens, and their arguments have bounced off the luxurious marble-and-tapestry walls of Congress like so many thrown dead sparrows.  After you read the satire which follows, which most certainly will put bobknowsall out of blogging, you should check this site to read the truth.

Here’s the funny stuff – we censored (by merely striking through) Continue reading →

I used to have linux on my desktop. The Gnome GUI was nice and KDE, if you dared, was actually better and more powerful.

But the Linux folks couldn’t be happy with something that worked. Oh, no. Continue reading →

True to form, the indomitable French have come up with a new invention that shakes all of Science.

This latest development allows an individual to continuously home in on virtually all simultaneous internet communication, eavesdrop on virtually all emails and videos, listen in on all private VOIP calls, horn in on all webinars, download and simultaneously listen to all past, current, and future songs, watch virtually all music videos, and hear a pin drop in outer space – all at the same time.

Jacques Morneau with his latest invention

“‘owevere, eet seems to most of zee untrained to be, er, ‘ow you say, indecipherable” All zee ozers ‘ou are not zee French but ‘ave tried my eenvencion ‘ave come away sayeeng eet zounds like zee white noise. Naturalement, zey obviously ‘ave zee leemeeted intelligence and are not zee French.”

Prof. Morneau has been seen walking the Rue de Pais wearing his latest invention, to the admiration of all who pass by. When he allows another Frenchman to wear the headset, of course he or she nods in approval and walks away in complete amazement.

Perhaps the headset translates everything into French White Noise.

We live in a cold, sunless northern state in the U.S. Doctors here sometimes wonder why a patient’s vitamin D level is low.

Hazards abound in the north; some time ago, glaciers covered this land a mile deep with Ice and snow which grated across the landscape creating a barren wasteland. As evidenced by constantly melting glacier ice throughout the world, t took quite some time to reestablish life here.  Here in the north, arable land is rare. It is rock-laden. Farmers two centuries ago used the stones to form walls – read Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall”. Winter frosts force more rocks to the surface yearly, lift and drop existing walls and foundations and cause complete entropy of the geological system.

The sun doesn’t shine much here during the winter. White skins turn whiter, dark skins turn lighter. As summer approaches people tend to step out into the new sun to “take in some rays”.   That would include UV-B and UV-A (harmful ultraviolet sunlight). We’re told to wear sunblock, most of which are effective. Nothing you can apply to your skin is harmless. Natural cloth (read “cotton”) clothing is the most effective. An essential accessory is a wide-brimmed hat.

But what about tanning agents? Continue reading →

Americans revolt against tyrrany.

It’s been our Modus Operandum since the Tea Party.

The Boston Tea Party - revolt against taxation without representation

Until recent decades, we knew our oppressors, or at least knew of them. Back then it was easier to war against the bullies.

The news media once was an agent of the oppressed; as the voice of the people it exposed evil, routed the bad, angered the masses and set them into action. It was organizational, holistic. Inspiring, even.

Operative phrase there — “once was”. Continue reading →

….BTW – don’t let this be a tl;dr.

Supercookie – It’s not a nice word. They are hanging you out to dry and you don’t even know they exist.

"Dead" by Mr. Edgar -- http://mredgar.deviantart.com/art/dead-79400802

Man has a way of not knowing…anything, really, though we think we’re so friggin’ smart. Continue reading →

…because her people are no longer interested in blessing her.

This photo is courtesy of my nephew Justin. It shows an older man in a wheelchair standing as the U.S. flag passes by. Notice, though, that no one else bothers to expend the energy. They’d rather sit by and suck down the suds and text their BFFs how boring the parade is.

Stand!

If you have ever had any idea what it is like to be in any other country, you learn respect for your nation and the flag that represents it.

There is no more to say.

OK, how dumb is this?

Could be trouble.

About 15 years ago a Sci Fi novel contained a premise that the good ol’ US of A was about be invaded by another power. Although I don’t care to go into details about the novel, the plot behind it all was the overseas manufacture of computer chips of all kinds. Meantime there was foreign influence by the U.N. and other nations to disarm the citizens of the United States. For the most part, that anti constitutional effort was passed by a weak, bickering Congress more bent on partisan politics than running this country, by a Senate steeped in greed, crime and filthy lucre, and by a weak President bent only on appeasing the people politic, giving handouts to the lazy, the greedy and the shiftless. But that was a novel.

Today there are chips in literally everything including your refrigerator, TV, telephone, the street light outside, your car, the electric grid, your grocer’s freezer, the gas pump where you go to fuel your car, the wells that pump your water, your heat/air conditioning…everywhere. Continue reading →

Steve Jobs has died. Long live innovation.

There is a wonderful biographical story from Yahoo on this link.

Here’s Bob’s take on all this: Continue reading →