Miguel Caetano

"During summer of 2009 I received an invitation to explain how Free Software can help developing countries at SFK09, the first Software Freedom Conference in Kosova. Here is why and how, after SFK09, some people continue to propose “Free as in Freedom” digital technologies as an important tool to solve the serious problem of people in Kosova (or any other country, really)." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"The journalism world has been rightly outraged by the Justice Department dragging the Associated Press (and now a Fox News reporter) into one of its sprawling leak investigations. As we wrote last week, by obtaining the call records of twenty AP phone lines, “the Justice Department has struck a terrible blow against the freedom of the press and the ability of reporters to investigate and report the news." But there are several other important lessons that this scandal can teach us besides how important free and uninhibited newsgathering is to the public’s right to know. 1. Weak Privacy Laws That Doomed AP Affect Everyone" - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"It is now well known that the Obama justice department has prosecuted more government leakers under the 1917 Espionage Act than all prior administrations combined - in fact, double the number of all such prior prosecutions. But as last week's controversy over the DOJ's pursuit of the phone records of AP reporters illustrated, this obsessive fixation in defense of secrecy also targets, and severely damages, journalists specifically and the newsgathering process in general. New revelations emerged yesterday in the Washington Post that are perhaps the most extreme yet when it comes to the DOJ's attacks on press freedoms. It involves the prosecution of State Department adviser Stephen Kim, a naturalized citizen from South Korea who was indicted in 2009 for allegedly telling Fox News' chief Washington correspondent, James Rosen, that US intelligence believed North Korea would respond to additional UN sanctions with more nuclear tests - something Rosen then reported. Kim did not obtain... more... - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"No centro de uma acção judicial, empresa que vende o teste genético feito pela actriz viu acções baterem recordes "Decidi não manter a minha história privada porque há muitas mulheres que talvez não saibam que podem estar a viver sob a sombra do cancro. A minha esperança é que elas também possam fazer um teste genético e, se tiverem um risco elevado, saibam que têm boas hipóteses." As razões da actriz Angelina Jolie para tornar pública a sua dupla mastectomia, após descobrir um risco hereditário de vir a ter cancro da mama na ordem dos 87%, surgiam no penúltimo parágrafo do editorial publicado há uma semana no "The New York Times"." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"I owe a lot to self-publishing technology. If I had been born before the age of blogs and inexpensive scanners, there is no way anyone outside of my immediate family would have ever seen any of my work. Since the beginning of my online blogging and illustrating, I’ve wanted to take my science storytelling and comics to the next level: physical publishing, sometimes called “books.” It’s pronounced buuuuks. I’ve been sending query letters and manuscripts to publishers for years to no avail. Every time I get a rejection letter I remind myself that J.K. Rowling’s manuscript that would one day become the international success Harry Potter was rejected dozens of times. But I would hold each rejection letter and stare at each rejection email and wonder if it would ever be possible. Oh, it is." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Statistics are helpful. But in economics, as in other lines of social inquiry, they are no substitute for proper historical analysis. CommentsIn impugning the authors’ motives and criticizing the uses to which others have put their research, critics of Reinhart and Rogoff have taken their eye off the ball. The real problem is scholarly procedures and priorities, not motives. If the problem of procedures and priorities is addressed, the fact that politicians are tempted to misuse scholarly analysis for their own ends will take care of itself. CommentsIn other words, what is true of the economy is equally true of economic analysis. A crisis is a terrible thing to waste." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

""As pessoas não compram com dinheiro, compram com o tempo que tiveram que gastar para ter esse dinheiro. Não se pode desperdiçar esse tempo, é preciso guardar algum tempo para a vida", argumenta o homem que preside um país de 3,3 milhões de habitantes e que se vende como paraíso da natureza e da tranquilidade. Vestido com roupa e tênis esportivos de tons cinzentos e negros, Mujica lembra então a célebre frase de Séneca que "pobres são aqueles que precisam de muito", mas depois esclarece que seu estilo não é uma "valorização da pobreza", mas "da sobriedade no viver"." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"De 22 a 24 de maio a Libre Graphics Research Unit reúne-se no Porto para o seu último encontro, a conclusão do projeto que faz agora dois anos. O encontro, organizado pela Manufactura Independente com o apoio da Constant, terá lugar nos Maus Hábitos. A Libre Graphics Research Unit é uma unidade de investigação que reúne várias entidades culturais europeias com o objetivo de aprofundar as possíveis relações entre ferramentas criativas, práticas artísticas e cultura livre. Este encontro é o último numa série de vários que ocorreram em várias cidades pela Europa." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"THE CULTURAL EXCEPTION IS NON-NEGOTIABLE! The 13th of March may become a major turning point in European construction – and a scandalous one. That was the day the European Commission, under the leadership of Commissionner Karel de Gucht, decided to trample on the cultural exception and adopted a draft negotiation mandate that includes audiovisual and film services into the EU-US trade discussions to start this summer. Forgotten are the passionate words of President Barroso back in 2005: “on a scale of values, culture comes before the economy”. Gone, too, are President Barroso’s declarations of love for cinema when directors were forced into action to defend the MEDIA program. And what happened to the Commission slogan, “Europe loves cinema”?" - Miguel Caetano

"Nico Simon and Claude-Eric Poiroux, the CEO of Europa Cinemas, announced the results for 2012.  A record 63% market share for European films was achieved across the Network, confirming the major contribution made by Europa Cinemas members to the life of European films, although, alarmingly, overall attendance slipped by 5%. Androulla Vassiliou confirmed the ongoing support from Creative Europe for the Network’s work in programming European films and in attracting the young audience." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"the avalanches sleepy bedtime mix for young ones (2012) made for the exclusive mixtape website - http://www.pinchyandfriends.com. check it out! This mix and more available for free download at http://www.theavalanches.com http://www.facebook.com/theaval... http://www.theavalanches.com/forum http://www.last.fm/music... http://www.myspace.com/theaval..." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Uploaded on Jul 16, 2008 www.boycom.co.uk This is the first track from the new Avalanches album! There's 2 more at www.boycom.co.uk hope you enjoy it! ps: this is still a rough unmixed version; for other new promo albums, check out the www.boycom.co.uk webpage as well!" - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Julian Assange revela estar na posse de indícios de que terá sido “tramado” no processo por violação de que é alvo na Suécia. Refugiado na embaixada do Equador, em Londres, o fundador da Wikileaks voltou à ribalta com uma entrevista que concedeu a uma televisão espanhola." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"In the past two years, Ford has embarked on a rather ambitious program. He privatized half the garbage pickup; took away the right of transit workers to strike; cut bus routes; forced key concessions from public sector workers; refused to provide needed shelter for the homeless; and opposed spending on new and much needed transit investments, arguing that the private sector would willingly pay for it all if the proper sorts of partnerships were created. He opposed any new forms of surface mass transit, seeing it as part of the “war on the car.” There were also different forms of resistance to Ford’s program from social movements and unions across the city, as well as a moderate social democratic political opposition on City Council. But well into his mayoralty, his incompetence, hypocrisy, obnoxious behaviour and contempt for those who disagree with him has angered and embarrassed even many of his right-wing allies. These include significant elements of the right-wing coalition in... more... - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"O Estado foi buscar 2.566 milhões de euros aos 3,5 milhões de pensionistas e aposentados portugueses nos últimos três anos, de acordo com as contas do economista Eugénio Rosa. O mesmo é dizer que cada reformado perdeu, em média, 733 euros neste período, entre cortes, congelamentos e impostos, segundo o DN e o JN.  Entre os 3,5 milhões de portugueses reformados e pensionistas, dois milhões têm pensões baixas, abaixo do salário mínimo nacional, mas mesmo assim não têm sido poupados à vaga de austeridade." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Há anos, o comportamento "tóxico" (termo usado pela indústria) é apontado por jogadores de games de multijogadores como tipicamente brasileiro. "DayZ" é apenas o alvo mais recente, mas outros títulos, como "Call of Duty", "World of Warcraft", "DotA" e "Minecraft", entre vários outros, também têm legiões de arruaceiros brasucas." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Back in January at CES, we got our hands on Lenovo’s IdeaPhone K900 Intel-Inside smartphone, a sleek unibody handset with Corning Gorilla Glass 2 and a 5.5-inch 1080p display. It has been a long time coming, but the smartphone has finally hit shelves, with Lenovo launching the phone in China earlier this week. The K900 is slated to roll out internationally over the summer." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"O governo federal pode, sim, ter acesso a dados que cidadãos cederam a empresas. Mais que isso: um órgão estatal pode conseguir informações que foram apuradas por outra entidade do Estado, com finalidade diferente. As conclusões são do professor de direito Bruno Magrani, da FGV-RJ. Ele é o autor do capítulo brasileiro em um estudo que mapeia maneiras pelas quais governos de todo o mundo conseguem acesso a dados particulares em poder de empresas. A pesquisa foi coordenada pelo Center for Democracy and Technology, com sede em Washington, e será publicada como livro neste mês. Haverá capítulos sobre Alemanha, Canadá, China, EUA, Israel e Reino Unido, entre outros --a Folha teve acesso exclusivo à seção que trata do caso brasileiro. Foram identificados dois principais modos pelos quais o Estado tem acesso sistemático a dados do setor privado." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"The Philosophy section of our big Free Online Courses collection just went through another update, and it now features 90 courses. Enough to give you a soup-to-nuts introduction to a timeless discipline. You can start with one of several introductory courses." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"It’s hard to believe that it has taken ten years of releases for Cécile Schott to find her voice. That’s not to speak ill of her earlier run of records; her debut Everyone Alive Wants Answers was a joy, and her later instrument-heavy experiments were always crucial, but on The Weighing of the Heart we hear Schott’s actual vocals for the first time. It’s similarly difficult to believe that unlike so many others in her position, Schott manages to resist the temptation to embellish her words with reverb, autotune or overdrive. If The Weighing of the Heart shows one thing above all else, it’s Schott’s evolution and courage as an artist." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Lixeira tinha panos que serviam para forrar caixões. Coisas mórbidas, mas bastante reais. A Câmara diz que resolveu, e culpa a crise pelo atraso. Uma nota de 9 de Abril que a CDU enviou à imprensa dava conta de que o “Cemitério de Odivelas não respeita os mortos, a sua família e a saúde pública”. Denunciava que desde 2001 o cemitério está numa situação de ruptura. Mas não se ficam por aqui c colocam fotos no PDF." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"The first sustained exploration of Simondon’s work to be published in English. This collection of essays, including one by Simondon himself, outlines the central tenets of Simondon’s thought, the implication of his thought for numerous disciplines and his relationship to other thinkers such as Heidegger, Deleuze and Canguilhem. Complete with a contextualising introduction and a glossary of technical terms, it offers an entry point to this important thinker and will appeal to people working in philosophy, philosophy of science, media studies, social theory and political philosophy. Gilbert Simondon’s work has recently come to prominence in America and around the Anglophone world, having been of great importance in France for many years." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Maria da Conceição de Almeida Tavares (Anadia, 24 de abril de 1930) é uma economista portuguesa naturalizada brasileira. É também professora-titular da Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) e professora-emérita da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Filiada ao Partido dos Trabalhadores, Maria da Conceição já foi deputada federal pelo estado do Rio de Janeiro entre 1995 e 1999, e é autora de diversos livros sobre desenvolvimento econômico." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"In the aftermath of a financial crisis marked by bank-friendly bailouts and loosening campaign finance restrictions, a chorus of critics warns that business leaders have too much influence over American politics. Mark Mizruchi worries about the ways they exert too little. The Fracturing of the American Corporate Elite advances the surprising argument that American CEOs, seemingly more powerful today than ever, have abrogated the key leadership role they once played in addressing national challenges, with grave consequences for American society. Following World War II, American business leaders observed an ethic of civic responsibility and enlightened self-interest. Steering a course of moderation and pragmatism, they accepted the legitimacy of organized labor and federal regulation of the economy and offered support, sometimes actively, as Congress passed legislation to build the interstate highway system, reduce discrimination in hiring, and provide a safety net for the elderly and... more... - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Antonio Negri’s The Winter is Over comes out of the glimmer of optimism created by the events of 1995, when the long, cold season of neoliberalism, Thatcherism, Reaganomics, reaction, and counterrevolution appeared to have run its course. Published in Italian in 1996, The Winter is Over brings together a series of articles, speeches, and other documents written by Negri between 1989 and 1995 at the threshold of this thaw. It offers a revealing and wide-reaching account of those years of change and brink-of-change, focusing on such topics as the networks of social production, the decline of “limp thought,” the end of applied socialism, the Gulf War, and, finally, Italy’s transition to its so-called “Second Republic,” as seen by an exile." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"For Dr James Allen-Robertson, sociologist and author of the new book Digital Culture Industry: A History of Digital Distribution, this ‘hacker ethic’ - forged when hippy counterculture overlapped with the budding computing industry in the sixties - is at the root of the modern media industry’s now dominant methodologies, from iTunes to Netflix. Ironically however, it may also change the nature of ownership forever - and not in the consumers’ favour, with purchasing effectively becoming “more like a long term loan”." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

""In a decision that's almost certainly going to result in this issue heading up to the Supreme Court, the Federal 1st Circuit Court of Appeals [Friday] ruled that police can't search your phone when they arrest you without a warrant. That's contrary to most courts' previous findings in these kinds of cases where judges have allowed warrantless searches through cell phones."" - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Since the mid-1980s, US audiences have watched the majority of movies they see on a video platform, be it VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, Video On Demand, or streaming media. Annual video revenues have exceeded box office returns for over twenty-five years. In short, video has become the structuring discourse of US movie culture. Killer Tapes and Shattered Screens examines how prerecorded video reframes the premises and promises of motion picture spectatorship. But instead of offering a history of video technology or reception, Caetlin Benson-Allott analyzes how the movies themselves understand and represent the symbiosis of platform and spectator. Through case studies and close readings that blend industry history with apparatus theory, psychoanalysis with platform studies, and production history with postmodern philosophy, Killer Tapes and Shattered Screens unearths a genealogy of post-cinematic spectatorship in horror movies, thrillers, and other exploitation genres. From Night of the Living... more... - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"Film stocks are vanishing, but the image remains, albeit in a new, sleeker format. Today, viewers can instantly stream movies on demand on televisions, computers, and smartphones. Long gone are the days when films could only be seen in theaters: Videos are now accessible at the click of a virtual button, and there are no reels, tapes, or discs to store. Any product that is worth keeping may be collected in the virtual cloud and accessed at will through services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Instant. The movies have changed, and we are changing with them. The ways we communicate, receive information, travel, and socialize have all been revolutionized. In Streaming: Movies, Media, and Instant Access, Winston Wheeler Dixon reveals the positive and negative consequences of the transition to digital formatting and distribution, exploring the ways in which digital cinema has altered contemporary filmmaking and our culture. Many industry professionals and audience members feel that the new... more... - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet

"The creator of Bitcoin-- who I think he is, and why." - Miguel Caetano from Bookmarklet