Bill gates recently gave an interview in which he said that people that opposed software patents, or other tightening of intellectual property laws, are “communists”.

Richard M. Stallman has an amusing and elightening article, Bill Gates and other communists, in response.

Favorite juicy quote:

Thanks to Mr. Gates, we now know that an open Internet with protocols anyone can implement is communism; it was set up by that famous communist agent, the U.S. Department of Defense.

These sorts of things really tick me off. Wired is reporting that the U.S. House has passed HR2391, which, among other things, would make it a violation of the Copyright Act to skip commercials using a technological means (hardware or software) — and it makes it a violation to make the computer program that allows people to skip commercials.

I feel a donation to the EFF coming on.

According to an article entitled Pentagod Retaliates against GIs who spoke on TV, it is apparently prohibited for people in the military to criticize their elected representatives — a basic right that everyone else enjoys. No wonder their morale is low.

An Associated Press article discusses a new state law in Kansas that automatically registers men 18-25 for the draft when they apply for or renew a drivers’ license. Some Mennonites in the state are arguing that choosing not to register for the draft for religious reasons is a right that this new law removes. Not registering is illegal, but is rarely prosecuted. Mennonites have strong beliefs in peace.

In this article, Chisun Lee starts out with “An ugly theory popped up in the nation’s capital several weeks ago. The Bush administration would wait until war began, and worry gripped the homeland, to ram a staggering package of domestic security measures through a Congress silenced by fears of seeming unpatriotic. Such measures would radically expand the executive branch powers already inflated by the 2001 USA Patriot Act.” And this might just be happening…

You just can’t go wrong with an article that starts with Have I ever mentioned that I love Larry Lessig? The SXSW Sunday Afternoon: Lessig article goes on to write: He begins with a sanctimonious quote from Jack Valenti: “Morals, democracy, integrity. All being corrupted by sharing. Sharing has introduced a moral decay.” Lessig, needless to say, disputes the claim. Click above to read the full article from David Weinberger.

On Monday, a man was arrested in a mall for wearing a shirt reading “Give Peace a Chance.” But the story gets better. Apparently the man bought the shirt at that very mall, and happens to be an attorney that is the charmain of the New York Commission on Judicial Conduct.

In a later update, after a 100-person protest, the mall asked that the charges be withdrawn, but offered no explanation. It is still up in the air whether or not the police will drop the charges.