California is trying a deceptively simple approach to the problem of junk e-mail: It is about to ban spam. While spammers in Australia who repeatedly send unsolicited bulk e-mail could be fined up to $1 million a day under new anti-spam laws shortly to be introduced into Federal Parliament. But the Government, political parties, charities and religious organisations, which are understood to be exempt, would still be able to send as much spam as they like
Iraq was in effect put up for sale when the American-appointed administration announced it was opening up all sectors of the economy to foreign investors in a desperate attempt to deliver much-needed reconstruction against a daily backdrop of kidnappings, looting and violent death
A permanent ban on taxes unique to the Internet has taken another step toward reality, with House approval of legislation that next goes to the Senate
Lost or stolen mobile phones will be useless to anyone who tries to make calls on them, as a result of new federal regulations. They will be blocked on all mobile phone networks, rendering them virtually worthless because they can no longer be used
Could this man be the next Governor of California?
This site has some great mpegs and video. Need I say any more.
A WTO draft trade text issued at the organisation’s meeting in Cancun calls for an end to export subsidies on farm products of special interest to developing countries and their gradual elimination on other farm goods. Unfortunately, talks have fallen through, with developing nations angrily accused richer countries of pushing their own interests
Sweden was in a state of shock after its Foreign Minister, Anna Lindh, died after being stabbed while shopping at an exclusive department store. It didn’t take long for the morons to crawl out of the woodwork and declare her assassin a patriot
China, a haven for spammers, wakes up to the problem and blocks 127 servers identified as the sources of high volumes of unsolicited e-mail
Anti-spam legislation is being fast-forwarded by the Federal Government. The Bill is expected before parliament within weeks and will likely be in place before xmas
The Court of Appeal in The Hague rejected all of Scientology’s claims in appeal in Scientology’s action against XS4ALL, Karin Spaink and ten other internet providers. As a result, Karin Spaink’s web site, which Scientology sought to remove from the Internet based on copyright claims, is entirely legal in the Netherlands. The court also overturned two lower court rulings, one of which said that linking to material that infringed a copyright was itself actionable. The other ruling said that ISPs that failed to act on credible notification of a copyright violation could be held liable for that. The Appeals Court felt that this was too vague a standard, and thus posed a threat to free speech
The Dutch are the first to permit cannabis to be legally dispensed to those with a doctor’s prescription, and other countries — including Britain, parts of the US, Australia and Canada, where plans for a similar system are at an advanced stage — will be watching the Dutch experience closely
The WTO has agreed to give poor countries greater access to inexpensive lifesaving medicine by altering international trade rules
Computer glitches by the US Air Force allowed some foreign countries to get classified or sensitive military parts they weren’t supposed to have
Human rights groups have condemned Vietnam for upholding espionage charges against Pham Hong Son, an imprisoned cyber-dissident and pro-democracy activist, calling for his immediate release
US Trade officials have backed off from a tough line on music, movie and software piracy, admitting that shoehorning Australia into a copyright regime based on criminal law may be a bridge too far
The Federal Government plans to outlaw using the internet for ‘offensive and menacing purposes’, proposing new laws that could mean two years in prison for activities like organising or advocating violent protests through the internet. However, the opposition aren’t amused, saying it could be used to crack down on legitimate protest
Coke and Pepsi, recently accused of having dangerous quantities of pesticides in their Indian products, are challenging a ban on their drinks in government buildings. Lawsuits must be a cheaper option than pulling their finger out and removing the pesticides
The Federal Trade Commission has filed suit against GoInternet.net, charging that it hawks Web presence over the phone and then assesses its targets on their phone bill without their authorisation
The retarded monkey boy is seeking funds for a controversial project to drive gas pipelines from pristine rainforests in the Peruvian Amazon to the coast. The plan will enrich some of Bush’s closest corporate campaign contributors while risking the destruction of rainforest, threatening its indigenous peoples and endangering rare species on the coast
Israel’s Parliament has passed a law preventing Palestinians who marry Israelis from living in Israel. The move was denounced by human rights organisations as racist, undemocratic and discriminatory. And the homophobic the retarded monkey boy said he remained firmly opposed to gay marriages and that administration lawyers were working to ensure that the term marriage would cover only unions between men and women. A stance that has created a backlash against the Vatican
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