MSM Monday Round-up

The government had its hand all over the tech world this week.

First we had that little incident with the MIT students who say they’ve figured out how to hack Boston’s subway fare cards. But now two judges still have a gag order on them. Writing in The Boston Globe, attorney Harvey Silvergate explains why the judges’ rulings are muzzling free speech.

The nimrods at major label record companies continue to fail to see the big picture. And now, due to greed and a ruling from the federal Copyright Royalty Board, streaming radio service Pandora – and presumably many others – could go under, as The Washington Post reports. See, the record companies will soon get twice as much cash every time you listen to a song online. Never mind you might decide you like the band you’re listening to and then go buy a few overpriced concert tickets. Innovation: Not a music mogul’s strong point.

And as long as we’re on nimrod-like behavior, check out the first lines of this USA Today story about the Transportation Security Administration’s new rule that will allow some laptops to go through airport metal detectors without coming out of their bags.

“It’s not surprising that Tim Burke is taking an airplane flight Monday, but it is unusual that he’s looking forward to it. The reason: Starting on Saturday, some of the nation’s airline passengers will not have to remove their laptops at airport checkpoints.”

Ok, to recap, Tim Burke can’t wait to fly because one of countless inconveniences has been eliminated. And now that gas has gone down ten cents, I can’t wait to fill up my tank.