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Tech: Set Finkelstein compares the BSA’s weasel mascot to, of all things, the Beagle Boys!

USA: The NYT has an article on Kennedy Fried Chicken, a NYC outfit that is run by Afghan immigrants. Originality is not in their recipe: Kennedy copies as much of the Kentucky Fried Chicken formular as they can, despite a 1990 court ruling. However, the NYT writer seems to prefer Kennedy’s chicken to Yum’s greasy by-product. There are also some great “only in new York” moments in the article. A customer complaining that the soda they bought somewhere else is warm, but he wants a replacement from Kennedy. A teenager tries to negotiate his own prices.

Tech: The American Library Association is distributing its own copyright materials to students, emphasizing policies like fair use that the MPAA, RIAA and BSA are omitting from their corporate-driven, big publisher propaganda. All of these groups are targeting 10 year old kids, who they belive are easy to influence. The EFF is also developing its own materials, thank goodness.

China produces about 80% of all DVD chipsets right now. They’re not making much profit though: perhaps $1 a unit! Commoditization is taking hold again in consumer electronics. PCs, audio players and other devices will be next.

USA: Charley ripped Florida a new one: estimates now run at US$11 billion in damage. Some people actually blogged during landfall: this one appears to be a Libertarian from Lehigh Acres. Here’s another entry from some guy in Winter Park, where I earned my MBA.