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	March 16, 2003

SONY VS. SONY Sony and Phillips have announced new recording systems that will allow users to copy 30 hours of .mp3 music onto a single blank CD, or 100 hours of .mp3 music onto a blank DVD,  according the the New Scientist. The recording industry has responded with the expected condemnation and wringing of hands, since they still don't understand that (as NARAS executive John Snyder explained so well in Salon ), the industry, and not new technology, is the cause of their financial woes. What's interesting is that Sony's technology arm does understand this, and has no patience with sister Sony Music and their ilk: The New Scientist reports: "Mike Tsurumi, a president of Sony Consumer Electronics in Berlin, insists that the move makes sense. 'The music companies need to change their business model,' he says." 4:16:56 PM  trackback []  comment []

PROPAGANDA The following quote has been kicking around the blogosphere for a week or so, now, but I still think it's chilling: We got around to the subject of war again and I said that, contrary to his attitude, I did not think that the common people are very thankful for leaders who bring them war and destruction. "Why, of course, the people don't want war," he shrugged. "Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship." "There is one difference," I pointed out. "In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars." "Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country." This excerpt, if you haven't seen it before on Caterina's or Alas' blog, is from Gustave Gilbert's 1946 Nuremberg Diary and the person being interviewed was Hermann Goering. 2:27:58 PM  trackback []  comment []

© Copyright 2004 Dave Pollard. Last update: 19/02/2004; 2:41:12 PM.