The Register: Fair Use advocates silenced by Big Brother. Advocates trying to speak for regular Internet users were basically told to sit down and shut up during a "public" workshop on digital rights management dominated by IT heavyweights and Big Hollywood at the U.S. Department of Commerce Wednesday.

Speaking of Big Brother. . .

Not sure where I weigh in on this whole DRM thing.  I think the whole system is screwed up in that the people who make the music don't get paid like they should, compared to what record companies and Hollywood executives bring in.  If the artists were getting their due, then I don't think DRM would be bad.  However, it's the companies lobbying for this and I think that sucks since I can't imagine any of them being too hard up, regardless of what I'm downloading, burning or otherwise obtaining. 

NY Times: "President Bush is off to the worst start of any president in 75 years as measured by the Standard & Poor's 500 index."

This makes me laugh.  Listening to the man talk also makes me laugh.  I still think he wakes up everyday and practically shits his pants when he realizes he's still president.  I would if I were him.

Saw Minority Report last night.  Pretty cool flick though it had a ton of loose ends that didn't get wrapped up in my opinion.  Like the whole, "Don't take the bandages off for 12 hours or you go blind."  Why was that even in there if it didn't develop more?  Seemed like that should have been left on the editing room floor.  But what do I know?  There were all kinds of philosophical ways to look at that film.

First of all, the whole Big Brother element which is interesting.  Second, the fact that machines do what humans program them to do and humans are notoriously fallible.  Third, sacrifice of the few (Precogs) for the good of the many (everyone who didn't get killed).  There are many others I think.  All of which are good for a whole story in and of themselves. 

Another thing I wondered about as I sat in the movie is how do movie critics dispassionately sit in a movie and rationally judge what's going on?  I'm no movie fiend but I like to watch movies and every time I do, I get caught up in them.  I can't decide whether one movie is good or bad.  How do they do that?  Do you get a movie critics degree?