Interesting Links for 25-01-2012

[andrewducker]

• The Pirate Bay now lets you download physical objects
  Yes, I would totally download a car.
  (tags: copyright 3dprinting )
• McDonalds Twitter campaign goes terribly wrong (for some value of "got them lots of publicity")
  (tags: mcdonalds food twitter marketing )
• Forth Ports sells Ocean Terminal shopping centre - looks like we'll be getting some more

Comments

[bart_calendar]

Trying very, very hard to come up with a tweet that could combine the McDonald's thing with the Oklahoma senator who wants to ban the use of human fetuses in food.

[andrewducker]

No more soylent burgers?

[bart_calendar]

I only eat at McDonald's In Oklahoma because I'm put off by the McEmbryo Meal at my local franchise.

[cartesiandaemon]

the Oklahoma senator who wants to ban the use of human fetuses in food.

WHAT? It's like the reductio ad absurdum of political discourse.

Politician: I propose a private members bill that bans [my political opponenet] from kicking puppies.
Everyone else: Uhhh... I'm pretty sure that's not necessary?
Politician: So you think he/she SHOULD be able to kick puppies?
Opponent: I have no plans to kick puppies, now or in future. Honest.
Politican: Aha!

[cartesiandaemon]

"for some value of 'got them lots of publicity

[andrewducker]

Nobody is disputing what he said, are they? She's not saying "He spoke at length about how Jews should be rounded up and gassed and then broken down and made into puppy food sold in cute little cans with Stars of David on them."

And lacking any dispute or detail that indicates that he was revelling in it, I'm going to go with the facts as they're stated. If further ones come to light later then I'll change my mind, of course :->

[cartesiandaemon]

I don't think so. But her statement (full text: http://sassywire.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/statement-by-sarah-grunfeld-re-york-university-incident/) says:
he failed to qualify the statement clearly as an unacceptable opinion held by others
andI have since been grossly misquoted and ridiculed by the media, and attempts have been made to assign blame to me with the false claim that I simply “misheard” or “half heard” what was said
andI understand that there may have been a miscommunication, but any miscommunication was on the part of the professor, not me. The media has been complicit in allowing a false interpretation of my actions to be circulated widely, which can only have a chilling effect on the ability of students to have any kind of a voice on campus.
That to me looks like it probably means "he didn't mean and most people would have guessed that but I didn't and now I want to get out with the minimum

[andrewducker]

It's possible. I'd expect her classmates to come forward in that case and support her case.

And blaming all miscommunication on the part of the professor, rather than accepting that she might have misheard, and clear it up, indicates to me that she's the kind of person who goes from nowhere to nuclear option, and thus I just don't trust her opinion.