It does and it doesn’t. I mean, Roland is a straight up gunslinger from a time that resembles the “old west.” In every piece of artwork he’s depicted as a Clint Eastwood-type, which is how I always imagined it in my head.

Hey look at that, someone on a tech site who actually agrees (and has an informed opinion!) with me regarding Apple. Ars Technica (which I love) is full of technocrat libertarians. Trying to discuss this topic with them and how the law actually applies is like trying to teach quantum physics to a golden retriever. it…

So... you’re wrong. The issue is Apple has digital keys that they sign the OS with. Without those keys you can’t load on a new OS and keep the data partition intact.

Hahaha... yeah, I know. I mostly getting along with the tech types as, politically, they tend to be liberal. Except... when it comes to libertarian ridiculous ideas like the government shouldn’t be allowed to have access to evidence when they have a valid court order.

You are spot on. The 5th Amendment argument is ridiculous. If it’s really a problem, the government can cut Apple a check for the value of the cracked OS (i.e., the amount of time they put in) and invoke eminent domain. For the, I’m sure, millions of dollars Apple is spending on its defense, they’re getting arguments…

You must not be familiar with federal judges. They’re appointed for life and don’t care what the public has to think. The founders made sure Art. III judges were appointed for life for just that reason.

Yeah, thinking is hard, I know. It can wear you out if you’re not used to it. Try eating a hearty breakfast and doing some studying. Some day you’ll get there, little buddy.

Yes, trolling means, when you disagree with someone’s opinion by providing a factual refutation. I guess by that definition I’m a troll. I suppose that makes you an idiot.

Well... I’d hardly want to look the fool on the internet.

Google my friend, Google. I take absolutely no credit for the spelling. I Googled Tout Sweet and was way off.

However it happened, I know what I’m going to do next plane trip. But... I might not be so willing to disclose I violated federal law in a place where there are federal agents.

Knowing the amount of due diligence most “journalists” perform nowadays, that’s exactly what happened.

Not that I disagree with anything you said, but regarding StevenG’s comment, that’s not entirely true. Last I knew New Jersey had a law on the books that said when smart guns go on sale, only smart guns can be sold in New Jersey. Maybe StevenG lives in New Jersey.

So you admit there’s a hive mind here and when you think outside of that you’re a “troll,” got it. Glad you have such an appreciation for honest debate that doesn’t coincide with your preconceived notions. You’re a gem for humanity. Don’t lose that.

Name a single thing you can deduct an employee can’t. Office space? Yeah we deduct that for my wife who is a resident physician. Travel expenses? Yep we deduct those for business. Supplies? Yep, we deduct those. Utilities? Yep, we deduct those. Meetings? Yep, we deduct those.

You really don’t get more time off, you still have to prep, you don’t get paid vacation. You only get more time off if you make less money or charge astronomical amounts. If you charge 200%, if you work more than 1/2 the time you would have as a W2, you’re not getting more time off and you’re not making more money…

That’s the point, you don’t work the same hours. You have to charge a higher rate in order to even make it worth while. You’re not working full time all year, you’re paying both employee and employer payroll taxes, you pay full price for health care, you get no vacation, you get no money for prep time (depending on…

To be fair, most code is patented or copyrighted but instead protected as a trade secret by contract. Usually the contract says it’s illegal to decompile the code or something like that.

That’s some pretty 1984 thinking which really has no basis in reality. The government is never going to make it illegal to encrypt information. But, what is already illegal is refusing to comply with a court order.

Torture is always illegal, well since the Geneva convention at least. So, any incident of torture is per se illegal and completely indefensible.