James H McLaren @JamesHMcLaren@qoto.org

Large numbers of people don't understand what a billionaire is.

If you, like most of us, ONLY make $1 million a year, it would take you 1,000 years to make $1 billion.

Or, if REALLY lie most of us, you make $50,000 a year, it would take you 20,000 years.

TWENTY THOUSAND YEARS!

If you tax someone who makes a billion a year at a 90% top rate, they would "only" take home $100 million a year.

#billionaires #taxes

Man, I can’t believe 2019 was over 20 years ago

If I went to a crowded shopping center and started handing out Judy Bloom books for free, the GOP would do more to prevent it happening again than they’ve done to prevent mass shootings since Columbine.

The enforcement of copyright law is really simple.

If you were a kid who used Napster in the early 2000s to download the latest album by The Offspring or Destiny's Child, because you couldn't afford the CD, then you need to go to court! And potentially face criminal sanctions or punitive damages to the RIAA for each song you download, because you're an evil pirate! You wouldn't steal a car! Creators must be paid!

If you created educational videos on YouTube in the 2010s, and feature a video or audio clip, then even if it's fair use, and even if it's used to make a legitimate point, you're getting demonetised,. That's assuming your videos don't disappear or get shadow banned or your account isn't shut entirely. Oh, and good luck finding your way through YouTube's convoluted DMCA process! All creators are equal in deserving pay, but some are more equal than others!

And if you're a corporation with a market capitalisation of US$1.50 trillion (Google/Alphabet) or US#2.3 billion (Microsoft), then you can freely use everyone's intellectual property to train your generative AI bots. Suddenly creators don't deserve to be paid a cent.

Apparently, an individual downloading a single file is like stealing a car. But a trillion-dollar corporation stealing every car is just good business.

@technology #technology #tech #economics #copyright #ArtificialIntelligence #capitalism #IntellectualProperty @music@fedibb.ml @music@lemmy.ml #law #legal #economics

BREAKING: To prevent personal attacks against him, Ron DeSantis introduces new “Don’t Say Asshole” legislation.

Was not able to follow the Nebula ceremony last night, so it wasn't until this morning I found out my favorite novel of the year won. I repeat what I said in my review: Babel is a staggering work of genius.

http://templetongate.net/babel

#bookstodon @bookstodon

The Rudy Giuliani stories are totally creeping me out.

The families of those killing the Buffalo mass shooting are suing the whole online pipeline that radicalized the shooter.

A major Supreme Court decision will ultimately decide if they succeed. https://www.wired.com/story/buffalo-shooting-white-supremacy-lawsuit-4chan/

Lisa Young: Both the UCP and the NDP have women as leaders, but they have very different views of gender equity, women’s role in the economy and even women’s involvement in politics.

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2023/05/15/Danielle-Smith-Women-Voters/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_content=051523-m&utm_campaign=editorial

A quick line and wash sketch of an old brick house. #MastoArt #Watercolor #Ink #UrbanSketching

I think people would get more of my jokes if they made sense.

Give a man a fish, and Republicans immediately blame you for inflation. Teach a man to fish, and they call you a woke Marxist and pass a law banning Fishing Studies.

If they truly cared about Terry Fox's legacy they would be demanding a fully functioning healthcare system and a lifting of those with disabilities out of poverty

Finally the mosquito advice we need. Citronella doesn't work. Zappers don't work. A regular box fan works. Mosquitoes "are notoriously weak fliers, so circulating air can stop the bugs from reaching you."

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/citronella-candles-mosquito-repellents-dont-work/

why is this so funny?

If this is true, that prime-time Trump infomercial was an even more shameful act of journalistic malpractice on CNN's part than was previously understood.

Allowing audience members to applaud, but not boo or express disapproval, doesn't report the story, it materially alters it. It creates the false impression that Trump and his odious policies and behavior are more popular than they are.

https://www.mediaite.com/politics/republican-at-trump-town-hall-says-many-in-audience-were-disgusted-or-bewildered-by-ex-president/

(HT @lauren)

Elon Misk has named a new Twitter CEO, Linda Yaccarino.

So my question is, how many Scaramuccis will she last?

Did you know they sell a spray to stop chickens from being cannibals? It doesn't stop the cannibalism, but it can reduce it.