“Fan protests broke out surrounding Marvel Comics’ announcement of a joint venture with U.S. defense contractor Northrop Grumman. In short order, Marvel had scrapped the joint venture entirely.”
“The ISO has decided not to approve two NSA-designed block encryption algorithms: Speck and Simon. It’s because the NSA is not trusted to put security ahead of surveillance.”
Read more: https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2017/09/iso_rejects_nsa.html
“The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said it had approved the application of Alphabet Inc—the company that runs Google—to provide the service in emergency circumstances.”
“In a stunning setback to federal prosecutors planning to try the Bundy family patriarch and two adult sons later this year, the jury acquitted Ricky Lovelien and Steven Stewart of all 10 charges, and delivered not-guilty findings on most charges against Scott Drexler and Eric Parker. More than 30 defendants’ supporters in the courtroom broke into applause after Chief U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro ordered Lovelien and Stewart freed immediately and set Wednesday morning hearings to decide if Parker and Drexler should remain jailed pending a government decision whether to seek a third trial.”
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/08/22/jury-refuses-to-convict-4-in-nevada-ranch-standoff-retrial.html
“A retired attorney in Virginia Beach is so incensed that Republicans couldn’t repeal the Affordable Care Act that he’s suing to get political donations back, accusing the GOP of fraud and racketeering. Bob Heghmann, 70, filed a lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court, saying the national and Virginia Republican parties and some GOP leaders raised millions of dollars in campaign funds while knowing they weren’t going to be able to overturn the law also known as Obamacare.”
“Originally, the bill protecting childhood entrepreneurs sought to guard home-based businesses against state intervention. However, many child-run lemonade stands are not operated solely on privately owned property. Often, these amateur businesses are operated on neighborhood street corners or sidewalks, which are unfortunately considered public property.”
Read more: https://fee.org/articles/lemonade-stands-legalized-in-utah/
“A federal appeals court on Friday struck down a regulation requiring the public to register drones. The US Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia found that the Federal Aviation Administration did not have the authority to regulate so-called ‘model aircraft.’ If it stands, the decision (PDF) means that the public does not have to abide by the FAA requirement established in 2015. To legally fly a drone, hobbyists are currently required to pay a $5 fee and dole out their name, home address, and e-mail address. Registration was required to be updated every three years. Maximum penalties for failing to comply included three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.”
“The Supreme Court on Monday delivered a major blow to so-called patent trolls—shell companies whose business revolves around acquiring patents and then suing others for infringing on them—by making it much harder to bring lawsuits in friendly venues like East Texas. In a unanimous ruling written by Justice Clarence Thomas, the court overturned a lower court’s interpretation of federal venue rules and said that patent owners must sue companies in the districts where they are incorporated.”
Read more: http://fortune.com/2017/05/22/texas-patent-supreme-court/
“Obama signed off on a surge that ended with 100,000 U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. His generals also promised to break the stalemate. Today, the Taliban controls more of the country than it has since 2001. Why are we still there? We went into Afghanistan after 9/11 to get Osama bin Laden and to punish the Taliban for harboring al-Qaeda. Now bin Laden is dead; al-Qaeda is dispersed; the Taliban has been battered. The United Nations reports that there were more than 11,000 war-related civilian casualties last year, and 660,000 Afghans were displaced, adding to the country’s massive refugee crisis. The war has now cost us over $1 trillion, making it the second-costliest U.S. war.”
“The bill seeks to remove marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act and resolve the existing conflict between federal and state laws over medical or recreational use of the drug. It would not legalize the sale and use of marijuana in all 50 states – it would simply allow states to make their own decisions on marijuana policy without the threat of federal interference.”
Read more: http://www.thecannabist.co/2017/03/02/federal-marijuana-prohibition-states-rights-bill/74718/