================================================= Expat Worlds Monthly Digest ================================================= August, 2007 Vol. 9, Issue 7 .....IN THIS DIGEST..... ==== THE STORY =================== -=Give me Freedom or give me Death=- ==== OTHER EZINES ================ ==== EW SPECIAL ================== -=Bye Bye Big Brother=- ==== HUMOR, TRIVIA, NEWS AND MORE... == -=Trivia=- -=News Story=- -=Jokes=- ==== THE RESOURCE TIP ============= -=ALZip v7.0=- ==== INSIDE THE CURRENT EXPAT WORLD == -=Table of Content=- ==== THE STORY ================================== GIVE ME FREEDOM OR GIVE ME DEATH Information's Imprisonment "THEY" control what you see, hear, say and watch First Amendment rights must be protected if our thirst for progress is to be quenched, our Love of participatory government to be sustained, and our embrace of civil Liberties to be complete. Un- fortunately, current economic trends threaten our right to free speech. Capitalism only functions when there is ample competition. Few people seem to notice that much of the competition in the communications, entertainment, and technology industries is drying up. This dangerous pattern leaves us with fewer means of attaining and disseminating information. Very little competition exists in the aforementioned industries. At best, we have competition within oligopolies. In 1984, Orwell warned the world about government controlled media and, while we have avoided his dystopian view, we have fallen into another. ALL forms of communications that were at one time able to reach a large percentage of the population are now under the control of just a few corporations. For example, radio broadcasting was a nationwide medium to reach people with music, radio shows, and, most importantly, news about the world around them and their government. Though there are around 10,000 commercial radio stations in the U.S, only about 15 are all-news outlets that employ large news staffs for their reporting. Out of the 15, 13 are owned by Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS). Here is where the real parent company fun begins: CBS is owned by Viacom Inc. which also own Paramount Pictures (one of the few major movie picture creators) as well as Simon & Schuster, one of the world's leading book publishing companies. So, Viacom controls a Leading television media company, a leading book publishing company, a leading movie media company, and the leader in radio news reporting, which means that a single group of chairmen can control what we read, watch, and hear, at least in part. To see how widespread such concentration is, visit http://www.theyrule.net/. Also, check out Free Culture by Lawrence Lessig. This lack of competition may allow multi-billion dollar corporations to shatter the foundations of the Internet in a push for profits. We may be the last generation to experience net neutrality. It has always been an underpinning rule of the internet that all packets are considered equal. However, many of the companies which own the lines used to transfer broadband data are now considering giving perks to content providers who pay more. In other words, those who cannot afford to pay high fees will be given slower routes and poorer service. For example, Verizon's CEO claims that Google is receiving a "free Lunch" and thinks his company should be compensated. Never mind that companies like Google enable Verizon to make a profit by giving people a reason to use the Internet. The end of net neutrality threatens free speech because only rich companies will be able to afford to have their voices heard. Startups will not be able to accomplish this or even get their products to market if their customers are stuck with lousy speeds when accessing their websites. A move away from net neutrality in the U.S. would put us at odds with the rest of the world. If foreign companies didn't pay off American companies, access to their sites would presumably be degraded as well. This could lead to a fractured Internet, which would obviously hinder the spread of information. While companies at in the USA pose a subtle risk to free speech, they readily inhibit the free flow of information abroad. Most of the censorship takes place in China, where American corporations are all too eager to trample free speech just to turn a profit. Microsoft censors such evil terms as "freedom," "democracy," and "human rights" from their MSN blogs. Google limits what users can see in order to please the Chinese government. Yahoo has twice helped hunt down a dissident journalist, admitting to Congress: "We have not reached out to the families of these journalists." With their vast resources, all of these companies can afford to make a stand for free speech. Right now, it is easier and cheaper for these companies to degrade human rights; this is a failure of the market which must be corrected. Congress, thankfully, has caught wind of this and held hearings, but it remains unclear at the time of this writing whether any action will come about. Digital Rights Management, or DRM, is a collection of technologies used for enforcement of intellectual property rights in computer hardware, software, and media. Works that may be subject to rights management are educational and included in online repositories, meaning that many educational materials will have restricted use, rather than be open to all. The use of DRM is seen by many in the computer industry as a lucrative source of new revenue. However, the use of digital technology should not be limited by corporations or government, and the shift of control to producers (even after sale) will ultimately hurt creative expression and damage consumer rights. If DRM is implemented on a wide scale, then those companies who control most computer mediums (read: Microsoft) will have control over what can be read, how many times it can be read, and who can read it, which is a scary thought considering the Internet was praised as a medium which cannot be limited and which would be open for all equally. For more information dealing with Digital Rights Management, as well as the future of the Internet read "The Digital Imprimatur: How Big Brother and Big Media Can Put the Internet Genie Back in the Bottle" by John Walker. Unless we do something to support freedom of speech, a grim future lies ahead. Remember, everything mentioned above just applies to U.S. companies. I don't realty know if the situation in other countries is quite as bad yet. If you have some insight on the effects of economics on free speech in other places, please share it. Luckily, there are several things we can do to help. Join a Free Culture Chapter (http://freeculture.org/chapters/chapters.php) if your university has one, or start one if it doesn't. Adopt a Chinese blogger so his or her words can bypass the Great Firewall. Support the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Lobbying efforts by becoming a member. Popularize alternative media, (Tell the world about Expat World then) and 2600, the hackers Quarterly,, by reading it and telling your friends about it. Install a Tor exit server to help others browse anonymously. Support Project Gutenberg, whose goal is to create an online Library of every book, and have their use be free of charge and free in use. More suggestions to promote the freedom of speech are welcome, as are stories of success in defending the spread of information. EDITOR'S NOTE: We thank the author's of this piece Dr. Apocalypse (dr.apocalypse@gmail.com) and Matt Fillhart for this article and views. EW is helping by disseminating this information. Great job men! ==== OTHER EZINES & BOOKS ======================== ASIAN TIMES ONLINE Asia most trusted source for news, business,commentary and analysis from throughout Asia and our world. (www.atimes.com). ----- SURVIVAL BOOKS Go to and check it out! ----- japan-guide.com Extensive, up to date online guide on Japan living and travel related information. http://www.japan-guide.com/ ==== EW SPECIAL ================================= BYE, BYE, BIG BROTHER - The Report No Government Wanted Printed The new three volume (over 800 pages) blockbuster report, Bye, Bye, Big Brother, a report that no government wanted printed contains the philosophy of "PT", Bureaucrat Busting, Protecting Your Ass and ASSETS and getting Big Brother Out of Your Life in the Post 9-11 World. It is where the answers are. BBBB will educate all those who do not know what a PT is and refresh the memory of the old-timers. Check out the details at: ==== HUMOR, TRIVIA, NEWS AND MORE... ================ NEWS STORIES Excuse me, I'd like to buy your B-52 MOSCOW (Reuters) - A wealthy Russian tried to buy a U.S. B-52 bomber from a group of shocked American pilots at an airshow near Moscow, a Russian newspaper reported Friday. The unidentified Russian, wearing sunglasses and surrounded by bodyguards, approached the U.S. delegation and asked to buy the bomber, the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper said. An astounded member of the U.S. delegation said the bomber was not for sale but that it would cost at least $500 million if it were to be sold on the spot. "That is no problem. It is such a cool machine," the Russian was quoted as saying by the newspaper, which said its reporter overheard the conversation. The bomber was not sold. Russia's new rich, who built fantastic fortunes trading commodities and contacts after the fall of the Soviet Union, have made a name for themselves as ostentatious purchasers of everything from British football clubs to Faberge eggs. --- Please hold the line ... all day long A CUSTOMER trying to call British telecoms operator BT Group was left hanging on the telephone for a total of 20 hours. Hannah King, 51, called BT's help line after an engineer failed to turn up to install a line at her new flat in Wales, The Times reported. For eight hours, she endured piped music before giving up. She tried for another eight hours the next day and for four hours the day after that. "Surely a company as big as BT can answer its phones," Ms King said. --- Country to change time zone by 30 minutes CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has changed his country's name, redesigned its flag and rejigged its coat of arms in his drive for a socialist state. Now the leftist reformer, highly popular for redistributing oil income, is seeking to move the country's time zone to offer a more equitable distribution of sunlight. Venezuela in September will turn clocks back by 30 minutes as it switches time zones to boost the amount of natural light to residents, a government official said on Thursday. Next month Venezuelan clocks will be set at Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) minus 4-1/2 hours, compared to the previous GMT minus four hours, Science and Technology Minister Hector Navarro told reporters at a news conference. He said the measure sought "a more fair distribution of the sunrise," which would particularly help poor children who wake up before dawn to go to school. "Very rigorous scientific studies have determined that ... the metabolic activity of living beings is synchronized with the sun's light," he said. Navarro said the government is planning to announce additional measures to "make more effective use of time." Venezuela, which under Chavez was officially changed to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, adopted its current time zone in the 1960s. --- Oxymoron: wholesome ----- "Having sex is like playing bridge. If you don't have a good partner, you'd better have a good hand." --Woody Allen ----- I have a great dog. She's half Lab, half pit bull. The good combination. Sure, she might fight off my leg. But she'll bring it back to me. ----- Diplomacy is the art of saying "nice doggy" until you can find a rock. ----- Every nation has to write a book about the Elephant: The French book - The Sex Life of the Elephant or: 1000 ways to cook Elephant The English book - Elephants I have shot on Safari The Welsh book - The Elephant and its influence on Welsh language and culture or: Oes ysgol tocynnau eleffant llanfairpwll nhadau coeden. The American book - How to Make Bigger And Better Elephants The Japanese book - How to Make Smaller And Cheaper Elephants The Greek book - How to Sell Elephants for a Lot of Money The Finnish book - What Do Elephants Think about Finnish People The German book - A Short Introduction to Elephants, Vol 1-6. The Icelandic book - Defrosting an Elephant The Swiss book - Switzerland: The Country Through Which Hannibal Went With His Elephants The Canadian book - Elephants: A Federal or State Issue? The Swedish book - How to reduce your taxes with an elephant. ----- Four married guys go golfing. During the 4th hole the following conversation took place: First Guy: "You have no idea what I had to do to be able to come out golfing this weekend. I had to promise my wife that I will paint every room in the house next weekend." Second Guy: "That's nothing, I had to promise my wife that I will build her a new deck for the pool." Third Guy: "Man, you both have it easy! I had to promise my wife that I will remodel the kitchen for her." They continue to play the hole when they realized that the fourth guy has not said a word. So they ask him, " You haven't said anything about what you had to do to be able to come golfing this weekend. What's the deal?" Fourth Guy: "I just set my alarm for 5:30a.m., When it goes off, I shut off my alarm, give the wife a budge and say, 'Golf Course or Intercourse?' So she says, "Wear your sweater." ----- A stuffy matron is with a new man in a top restaurant. The onion soup gets to her, and as the waiter is serving the main dishes she lets loose a bombastic fart. Trying to save face, she says to the waiter: "Sir! Please stop that immediately." "Certainly, madame," replies the waiter with a bow, "which way was it headed?" ==== THE RESOURCE TIP ============================ ALZip v7.0 ALZip is the easiest to use, most powerful, and by far the cutest compression utility available. When it comes to ZIP files, archives and compression, ALZip does it all. - Open 36 ZIP, archive and compression file formats. Designed for ease, and engineered for power, everything you'll find in ALZip is as simple to use as it is reliable. Download it at . ==== INSIDE THE CURRENT EXPAT WORLD =============== EXPAT WORLD NEWSLETTER (VOL.19 ISSUE 06) Table of Content: - NORTH KOREA -THE HERMIT COUNTRY - OTHER LITTLE TID BITS OF THE JOURNEY - LETTER FROM SINGAPORE - SINGAPORE -- SEX IN THE UPTIGHT CITY-STATE - SINGAPORE RANKED 29TH MOST PEACEFUL NATION - TAXING MATTERS - AS TAXES FOR AMERICAN EXPATS RISE, THEY ARE WEIGHING THE VALUE OF A U.S. PASSPORT - THE PATH TO A POSITION IN THE US FOREIGN SERVICE HAS BEEN REVAMPED - AROUND THE WORLD WITH EXPAT WORLD - INTERNATIONAL SNIPS AND CLIPS - THE WORLD'S GREATEST CONSULTANCY - EXPAT WORLD'S PRIVACY WORLD - BIG BROTHER TODAY - THE USA HAS THE MOST PRISONERS IN THE WORLD - CRAPPER RAPPER - RECOGNIZING AN OPPORTUNITY - STRIKING UP A CONVERSATION - DRINKING WATER - BEYOND MY WILDEST DREAMS YOU MISSING SO MUCH Each week the EXPAT WORLD DIGEST gives you just a smattering of what you can find in the EXPAT WORLD newsletter that we produce once a month. Why not get the whole story and subscribe now to our electronic version for just US $30 per year. Go to our website: www.expatworld.net to sign up. ********************************************************************* EXPAT WORLD - the newsletter of international living URL - http://www.expatworld.net Email - office@expatworld.net ---------- End of Expat World Digest --------------------------------