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"You don't have to insult people to be frank," says Wikipedia's co-founder. Yes you do, you prick. If you're being frank about people who are one or more of arses, liars, racists or general dicks, then the use of all these insults and more is clearly necessary. What next, blogs to be regulated under the principle of 'If you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all', or the old lie about swearing being a sign of an impoverished vocabulary? The Draft Blogger's Code of Conduct is at best a prissy irrelevance, and at worst a sign of creeping (self-)censorship. I hope I'm not the only person who would find myself losing a great deal of respect for any site sappy enough to sign up to it.
John Lanchester argues wisely and persuasively that intellectual property rights, which began as a safeguard for creators, have instead become a feeding trough for corporations. I just wish I shared his optimism about the chances of changing that.
"I knew something about ISNA and asked Syeed why—if his group truly supported peace and suchlike—its board included members directly linked to Islamic extremism and anti-Semitism, including the notorious Wahhabi-trained Brooklyn imam Siraj Wahhaj. The professorial Syeed dropped his polite mask, shook his fist at me, told me that I would one day "repent," and compared my question with a Nazi inquisition." An informative/terrifying piece on the methods Islamists use in attempting to skew debate and demonise anyone who stands up to them, and how it's all done "with the declared aim of improving relations".
John Lanchester argues wisely and persuasively that intellectual property rights, which began as a safeguard for creators, have instead become a feeding trough for corporations. I just wish I shared his optimism about the chances of changing that.
"I knew something about ISNA and asked Syeed why—if his group truly supported peace and suchlike—its board included members directly linked to Islamic extremism and anti-Semitism, including the notorious Wahhabi-trained Brooklyn imam Siraj Wahhaj. The professorial Syeed dropped his polite mask, shook his fist at me, told me that I would one day "repent," and compared my question with a Nazi inquisition." An informative/terrifying piece on the methods Islamists use in attempting to skew debate and demonise anyone who stands up to them, and how it's all done "with the declared aim of improving relations".
