Saturday, June 21, 2008

Photographer Documents Secret Satellites — All 189 of Them

I thought this was a very interesting article, also I liked the premise That How we look at Photography may have changed, that now some see it as a way of revealing truth of things that are hidden.His shots of 189 secret spy satellites are the subject of a new exhibit -- despite the fact that, officially speaking, the satellites don't exist. The Other Night Sky, on display at the University of California at Berkeley Art Museum through September 14, is only a small selection from the 1,500 astrophotographs Paglen has taken thus far.

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Friday, June 20, 2008

eBay Convicted in Counterfeit Case

eBay Convicted in Counterfeit Case

Finally something is happening, it's a small fine but it sets the precedent maybe now we will see some action in other areas.

eBay- Convicted- in-Counterfeit- Case

...

In what has the makings of a landmark decision, a court in Reims, France,
has ruled that eBay is directly responsible for the sale of bogus Hermes
bags on its auction site, and ordered the e-commerce giant to pay 20,000
Euros, or approximately $30,000, in damages. The ruling, handed down
Wednesday, stated that eBay "failed to act within [its] powers" to prevent
counterfeiting activity within its online community, according to a news
report, which stated the verdict was the first of its kind in France.

In a statement issued following the ruling, eBay said: "eBay takes the issue
of counterfeiting very seriously and we condemn it outright. Today's court
ruling relates to past seller verification issues. The court acknowledged
that eBay subsequently addressed these issues with its enhanced
anti-counterfeiting measures through its VeRO initiative."

...

A handful of similar cases are pending against eBay in five European
countries, and at least one is under review in the U.S. How heavily the
Hermes decision will factor in the direction of the remaining lawsuits
depends largely on the locality of the individual cases, notes Aaron
Kessler, senior research analyst with Piper Jaffray & Co. in East Palo Alto,
CA.

"The question is, who is the merchant of record, and how much is eBay
responsible for verifying the authenticity of the items sold on its site,"
Kessler says. "Each country might have its own interpretation of that. If
people don't trust what they're buying, that's a problem for eBay"

The material impact of the court fines will barely register at eBay-$30,000
is pocket change for the multibillion- dollar Internet goliath. However, eBay
has plenty to fear in terms of the psychological effect on buyers. While
it's probably close to impossible to completely eliminate illicit activity
on such an online venue, the company can and should take steps to increase
enforcement, Kessler says.

"There is continuing concern for buyers on issues of trust and safety. If
people don't trust what they're buying, that's a problem for eBay," he adds.
"We have been seeing slower buying activity on eBay the last couple of
years."

...

According to an Agence France-Presse report, lawyers for The Hermes Group
asserted eBay is "an active player in the transaction because, not only does
it offer a number of services to improve the sale, but when it does not work
well enough or fast enough, they intervene with the client. They are
perfectly informed of the transactions since they take a percentage cut."

Several other European designer brands, including Louis Vuitton, Dior
Couture and cosmetics company L'Oreal have separately sued eBay for doing
too little to thwart counterfeit activity. Unifab, a French industry lobby
group, has also taken eBay to court, seeking action by eBay to better police
its site.

In the United States, a counterfeiting lawsuit filed by Tiffany in 2004 is
now being considered by a New York federal judge.


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Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Alexander The Great (336–323 BC) (Coinage And History)



I have not been posting as much as I would like with the coinage and history series, so I thought I would get one out for a change this is one of my newest additions to the collection below you find some info on the coin and some history as well.

AR Drachm 19mm. 3.88g. Colophon Mint 301-297 B.C.

Head of Herakles, r. wearing lion skin headdress.
Zeus enthroned left., holding eagle and sceptre; lion's head left. above crescent in left. field; pentagram below throne.
Price 1832

Alexander the Great (Greek: Αλέξανδρος ο Μέγας or Μέγας Aλέξανδρος, Megas Alexandros; July 20 356 BC – June 10 323 BC),also known as Alexander III and Alexander the Macedonian, was an ancient Greek king (basileus) of Macedon (336–323 BC). He was one of the most successful military commanders in history, and was undefeated in battle. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the world known to the ancient Greeks.

Alexander assumed the kingship of Macedon following the death of his father Philip II of Macedon. Philip had united most of the city-states of mainland Greece under Macedonian rule (the so-called League of Corinth). After reconfirming Macedonian hegemony by quashing a rebellion of southern Greek city-states, and staging a short but bloody excursion against Macedon's northern neighbors, Alexander set out east against the Achaemenid Persian Empire, which he defeated and overthrew. His conquests including Anatolia, Syria, Phoenicia, Judea, Gaza, Egypt, Bactria, and Mesopotamia, and extended the boundaries of his own empire as far as Punjab, India.

Prior to his death, Alexander had already made plans for military and mercantile expansions into the Arabian peninsula, after which he was to turn his armies to the west (Carthage, Rome, and the Iberian Peninsula). His original vision had been to the east, though, to the ends of the world and the Great Outer Sea, as described by his boyhood tutor Aristotle.

Alexander integrated many foreigners into his army, leading some scholars to credit him with a "policy of fusion." He also encouraged marriages between his soldiers and foreigners; he himself went on to marry two foreign princesses.

Alexander died after twelve years of constant military campaigning, possibly as a result of malaria, poisoning, typhoid fever, viral encephalitis or the consequences of alcoholism. His legacy and conquests lived on long after him, and ushered in centuries of Greek settlement and cultural influence over distant areas. This period is known as the Hellenistic Age, and featured a combination of Greek, Middle Eastern and Indian culture. Alexander himself was featured prominently in the history and myth of both Greek and non-Greek cultures. His exploits inspired a literary tradition in which he appeared as a legendary hero in the tradition of Achilles.

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Tuesday, June 03, 2008

CityScape


This is a bit different from some of my other posts hope you enjoy it.
If you would like to use my Photo's for Derivative Works or other use please contact me for permission. I can also provide Higher resolution photo's if needed.

If you would like to use my Photo's for Derivative Works or other use please contact me for permission. I can also provide Higher resolution photo's if needed.


This
work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Licence.

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