Monthly Archives: June 2011

Cute WikiLeaks Video

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

The important and imperfect WikiLeaks knows how to do video:

It’s called What Does it Cost to Change the World?.

Spotted via From Nader and Gravel to Assange: There Are Some Parodies Money Can’t Buy.

Posted in Internet | Comments Off on Cute WikiLeaks Video

Microsoft Seeks Patent for Skype-Bugging Application

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

I got interviewed for this article on Microsoft seeks patent for spy tech for Skype
‘Legal Intercept’ would allow it to silently record VoIP communications, and said a few things.

Posted in Cryptography, Internet, The Media | Comments Off on Microsoft Seeks Patent for Skype-Bugging Application

Your Welfare State In Action

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

Read all about it at The Washington Monthly, 20,000 Leagues Under the State.

Posted in Econ & Money: Mortgage Mess | 8 Comments

Damn Lies

Posted on June 29, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

Could it really be true that 99% of statistics are made up? Maybe so.

Posted in Law: Criminal Law | Comments Off on Damn Lies

Miami-Dade Election Results

Posted on June 28, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

Gimenez squeaked through.

There are 1,221,592 registered voters in Miami-Dade County. Only 199,862 — 16.36% — voted today. Numbers like that make believers in a small-R republican form of government shake their heads.

Gimenez won by 4,375 votes, about 51% of the votes cast. A clear win but no landslide.

Look at it another way, that’s about 0.358 % — about one third of a percent — of the registered voters in the County.

Numbers like that make political activists think their work has meaning.

Posted in Miami | 1 Comment

Nobody’s Voting?

Posted on June 28, 2011 by Michael Froomkin

Turnout was so low at my local precinct here in Coral Gables, that when I went to vote around 4pm and put my ballot in the drum, it fell straight to the bottom and hit with a resounding hollow CLUNK.

“Not much turnout today?” I asked the poll worker.

“Hardly anyone,” she replied.

I live in prime Gimenez territory, since this is part of the district he represented on the Commission. Slightly worrying that. Maybe they all voted early — I hear it was busy at the library on Saturday.

Posted in Miami | 4 Comments