The Agile Micro ISV Blog

The UK’s Digital Economy Bill is designed to give the government the power to control access to the Internet with the aim of protecting the interests of big business.

The music industry is of course very happy with the bill, but a leaked memo showed that they are fully aware that the only way this will get on to the statute books is if it gets rushed through Parliament without proper scrutiny.

As a micro ISVer, I have to think about software piracy, but this bill is fundamentally flawed from the ground up. Please spare 5 minutes to help block it.

http://www.38degrees.org.uk/page/speakout/extremeinternetl

If, like me, you’re just starting the habitual head scratching that
comes when trying to work out what to buy your nearest and dearest for Christmas, you’ll be entirely pleased to find something that makes life just that little bit easier.

Andy Brice has had the splendiferous idea of producing a range of t-shirts for programmers.
Not only are they dripping with geeky coolness, the commission is being
split between a couple of worthy causes. So go on, love your geek, and
remember…

Geeks are for life, not just for Christmas.

Image via WikipediaThis post is for Blog Action Day 2008.

As a species, Homo Sapiens have a frighteningly high capacity for obedience. A majority of us, particularly in the West, *need*
to be told what to do. The systems put in place by the ruling classes
stupefy us into instant capitulation in the face of authority.

Our obedience is trumped only by our apathy and indifference to what
our governments do on our behalf. We accept facts, arguments and
decisions all too easily.

The existence of poverty and famine is the great tragedy of our
time. We accept the systems around us because they make us comfortable,
but we give no thought at all to the consequences of our economic
systems on less affluent countries. Why do we give it no thought?
Because we haven’t been told to give it thought. The narrative spewed
forth by what in this country we amusingly refer to as the “free press”
simply excludes it from our consciousness.

If we had anything that pretended to be a free press, our headlines
would look very different. Take one of the biggest crimes of recent
history as an example: The illegal Anglo-American invasion of Iraq in 2003, and its subsequent occupation.

Do you know what the cost of the war has been in Iraq? Well, for the Americans alone, it has currently cost $562,423,230,338. Have you thought about what *could*
have been done with that money had we not mounted an illegal invasion?
No. Because you haven’t been told to think about it. Here’s a few
things, we could have:

- *Completely* eradicated world poverty.
- Provided a home for *every* AIDS orphaned child in Africa.
- Provided primary school education for *every* child on Earth.

So why does poverty exist? Because our beloved guardians wish it.
You have only to look at the figures above to understand this. We value
Iraq’s oil reserves *far* more than the lives of Africans, for example.

“The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the
people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything
about it.” – Albert Einstein

As one humble blogger, I ask this: Engage. Find out what your
guardians are doing. Demand answers, explanations, ask awkward
questions. Do you know what your country is doing on the global stage?
Are you sure the mainstream information systems are telling you the
truth? The whole truth? Find out, and at all times remember this: THEY
WORK FOR YOU!

To find out more of what is happening in the world, look to independent media. For example, www.informationclearinghouse.info

Monitor your guardians closely, for example, I use www.theyworkforyou.com

Discover the truth, form your own opinions, start acting like you
are your guardian’s boss. Take back our democracy from the special
interest groups.

End poverty. Please.