Each year, we’ve reached the cap of H1-B visa applications earlier and earlier. This year, we have met (and nearly doubled) the cap on the very first day the application process is open. US reaches visa cap, skilled workers out of luck Technology companies may face a shortage of skilled workers later this year after [...]

N.M. Voters Divided Over Spaceport Tax A referendum in New Mexico yesterday on whether to raise a local sales tax to help pay for construction of the world’s first commercial spaceport remained undecided today, and won’t be passed or defeated until about 550 provisional ballots are counted later in the week. Dona Ana County election [...]

FBI checks gambling in Second Life virtual world FBI investigators have visited Second Life’s Internet casinos at the invitation of the virtual world’s creator Linden Lab, but the U.S. government has not decided on the legality of virtual gambling. “We have invited the FBI several times to take a look around in Second Life and [...]

Over at Reason, Cathy Young relates a story about the increasing online censorship in Russia. Putin is tightening the screws, and it’s becoming increasingly clear that Russia is slipping back into authoritarianism. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s steady rollback of hard-won press freedoms has entered a new stage. Not content with suppressing television, radio, and newspapers, [...]

Because they stole my idea: The competition requires significant energy and emissions goals (most importantly, fuel economy) with at least 100 mpg or its equivalent. The guidelines are replacing the outdated MPG with this new standard, MPGe, which takes into account energy equivalents, no matter what the energy source. Production capability is another important requirement: [...]

Today, a Federal Judge in Philadelphia struck down a 1998 law that made it illegal for online content providers to allow children access to “harmful” material: PHILADELPHIA — A federal judge on Thursday dealt another blow to government efforts to control Internet pornography, striking down a 1998 U.S. law that makes it a crime for [...]

Doug’s been doing a good job of keeping up with the news on the proposed XM/Sirius merger. As he’s pointed out, having one monopoly satellite radio is better than having two that go out of business. But something has been left out of the equation. What’s wrong with a monopoly in satellite radio? After all, [...]

A new report from the Federal Communications Commission says that Congress should grant it the authority to regulate violence on television: WASHINGTON — Television networks are free to sprinkle their programs with shootings, slashings, torture and other gore because the government has no regulatory authority over violent programming. But a draft report being circulated at [...]

A few days ago, I reposted The Future Of Liberty, in order to set the stage for a post on the American’s article on Milton Friedman & blogging. Yesterday, though, Doug jumped in between steps A and B with his own post… But I think there’s more that can be said. A lot of people [...]

I wrote this post back in January 2006 at The Unrepentant Individual. I’ve got a post I want to write in a day or two about blogging in general, but this post will lay the groundwork. —————————————————————— Since the American Revolution, and particularly in the past 100 years, we’ve seen a ceaseless growth of the [...]

Today’s Washington Post has a fascinating article discussing how China’s technology entrepeneurs are finding ways to surpass their country’s Great Firewall: GEDONG, China — There was no sign, but Gedong’s teenagers knew the way. Down a dusty alley just off Jicui Park and a few minutes’ walk from local schools, the curtained door beckoned. Inside, [...]

Republican lawmakers are renewing their efforts to turn Internet Service Providers into deputies of law enforcement: All Internet service providers would need to track their customers’ online activities to aid police in future investigations under legislation introduced Tuesday as part of a Republican “law and order agenda.” Employees of any Internet provider who fail to [...]

According to the 7th Circuit, cops can place a GPS tracking device on your vehicle, without warrant, based on a claim of suspicion. That claim doesn’t ever have to be justified to a judge, and since it doesn’t require a warrant, “probable cause” is whatever the officer thinks it is. From engadget: Earlier this month, [...]

Each day, electronics and wireless communication make the world a lot smaller. Benefits abound, as the world becomes more accessible from devices we carry in our pockets. RFID is one application with a lot of commercial applications. It’s been used by companies like Wal-Mart to further streamline their warehouse and inventory operations, along with a [...]

In recent years, several American cities have implemented or announced plans to provide “free” wireless internet access to their citizens. Of course, there really isn’t any such thing as free internet access. Taxes will pay for it somehow. What is often overlooked, though, is the price that might be paid if the government is in [...]

In California, a state assemblyman has proposed, in the name of saving the environment of course, banning incandescent light bulbs. Decrying the inefficiency of the common light bulb, a Democratic Assemblyman from Los Angeles wants California to become the first state to ban it — by 2012. Assemblyman Lloyd Levine says compact fluorescent light bulbs, [...]

Over at Slate, Jack Shaffer makes a persuasive case for eliminated the Federal Communications Commission: Suppose Congress had established in the early 19th century a Federal Publications Commission to regulate the newspaper, magazine, and newsletter businesses. The supporters of the FPC would have argued that such regulation was necessary because paper-pulp-grade timber is a scarce [...]

A Federal Judge in New York has ruled that a lawsuit by the music industy against XM Satellite Radio over a new XM radio that allows consumers to record songs played on XM onto an MP3 player can proceed forward: A lawsuit in which record companies accuse XM Satellite Radio Holdings of cheating them by [...]

New legislation currently pending before the Senate would greatly expand copyright law in an effort by the music industry to stifle yet another area of innovation: Satellite and Internet radio services would be required to restrict listeners’ ability to record and play back individual songs, under new legislation introduced this week in the U.S. Senate. [...]

Many of you are familiar with Digg.com, a news aggregator site where the actions of the community of readers propel “worthy” stories ahead of the rest. Essentially, they’re designed to separate the wheat from the chaff. Unfortunately, Digg has some inherent biases and a herd mentality that usually forces smaller blogs and news items, despite [...]