Roslan Rahman | AFP | Getty ImagesWilliams found his password and emailed the company, asking administrators to maintain 22-year-old Loren Williams' account so she could pore through his posts and comments by his friends. But within two hours, she said, Facebook changed the password, blocking her efforts. "I wanted full and unobstructed access, and they balked at that," said Williams, recalling her son's death in 2005. "It was heartbreaking. I was a parent grasping at straws to get anything I could get." Now lawmakers and attorneys in at least two states are considering proposals that would require Facebook and other social networks to grant access to loved ones when a family member dies, essentially making the site contents part of a person's digital estate. The issue is growing increasingly important as people record more thoughts and experiences online and more disputes break out over that material. Williams, a second-grade teacher from the Portland suburbs, ultimately got back into her son's account, but it took a lawsuit and a two-year legal battle that ended with Facebook granting her 10 months of access before her son's page was removed. Nebraska is reviewing legislation modeled after a law in Oklahoma, which last year became the first state to take action. "Mementos, shoe boxes with photos. That, we knew how to distribute once someone passed away," said Ryan Kiesel, a former legislator who wrote the Oklahoma law. "We wanted to get state law and attorneys to begin thinking about the digital estate." Under Facebook's current policy, deaths can be reported in an online form. When the site learns of a death, it puts that person's account in a memorialized state. Certain information is removed, and privacy is restricted to friends only. The profile and wall are left up so friends and loved ones can make posts in remembrance. Facebook will provide the estate of the deceased with a download of the account data "if prior consent is obtained from or decreed by the deceased or mandated by law." If a close relative asks that a profile be removed, Facebook will honor that request, too. Like the Oklahoma law, the Nebraska bill would allow friends or relatives to take control of social media accounts if the deceased person lived in the state. The measure would treat Facebook, Twitter and email accounts as digital assets that could be closed or continued by an appointed representative. Omaha lawyer William Lindsay, who specializes in estate planning, said his professional experience has taught him that the issue should be addressed in the law. But he also has a personal interest because of a cousin who died while serving in the Navy. "We wanted to be able to get the email records, but we couldn't because nobody knew the password," Lindsay said. "We wanted to let her friends know she had died, but we didn't know all of them." Sen. John Wightman, who sponsored the measure at the urging of the state bar association, said he expects the Judiciary Committee to approve the bill, sending it to the full Legislature. Facebook spokesman Tucker Bounds said the company was surprised by the Oklahoma law and was working closely with Nebraska legislators on the latest proposal. The company declined to say how many people had requested access to accounts held by Oklahomans, but Bounds said it was relatively rare. "I can tell you there aren't people pouring out into the streets asking for access," Bounds said. Oregon could be the next state to take up the issue. The Oregon State Bar Association has formed a group to work on the matter and hopes to propose legislation next year. Portland lawyer Victoria Blachly said the plan will mirror the Oklahoma law, but it will also include a "virtual asset instruction letter" that lists online information and passwords, along with instructions for when someone dies or becomes incapacitated. "That's the part that social media providers have been wrestling with," Blachly said. Like others, Blachly said she began studying the issue after a young relative died and left social media accounts in limbo. Her top concern is the emotional value of social media accounts. "Some people say, 'Well, if I get hit by a bus, what do I care?"' she said. "The people who love you care very much about it." © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Showing posts with label Become. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Become. Show all posts
Monday, June 4, 2012
Facebook May Become Part of Your Digital Estate
When Karen Williams' son died in a motorcycle crash, the Oregon woman turned to his Facebook account in hopes of learning more about the young man she had lost. Roslan Rahman | AFP | Getty ImagesWilliams found his password and emailed the company, asking administrators to maintain 22-year-old Loren Williams' account so she could pore through his posts and comments by his friends. But within two hours, she said, Facebook changed the password, blocking her efforts. "I wanted full and unobstructed access, and they balked at that," said Williams, recalling her son's death in 2005. "It was heartbreaking. I was a parent grasping at straws to get anything I could get." Now lawmakers and attorneys in at least two states are considering proposals that would require Facebook and other social networks to grant access to loved ones when a family member dies, essentially making the site contents part of a person's digital estate. The issue is growing increasingly important as people record more thoughts and experiences online and more disputes break out over that material. Williams, a second-grade teacher from the Portland suburbs, ultimately got back into her son's account, but it took a lawsuit and a two-year legal battle that ended with Facebook granting her 10 months of access before her son's page was removed. Nebraska is reviewing legislation modeled after a law in Oklahoma, which last year became the first state to take action. "Mementos, shoe boxes with photos. That, we knew how to distribute once someone passed away," said Ryan Kiesel, a former legislator who wrote the Oklahoma law. "We wanted to get state law and attorneys to begin thinking about the digital estate." Under Facebook's current policy, deaths can be reported in an online form. When the site learns of a death, it puts that person's account in a memorialized state. Certain information is removed, and privacy is restricted to friends only. The profile and wall are left up so friends and loved ones can make posts in remembrance. Facebook will provide the estate of the deceased with a download of the account data "if prior consent is obtained from or decreed by the deceased or mandated by law." If a close relative asks that a profile be removed, Facebook will honor that request, too. Like the Oklahoma law, the Nebraska bill would allow friends or relatives to take control of social media accounts if the deceased person lived in the state. The measure would treat Facebook, Twitter and email accounts as digital assets that could be closed or continued by an appointed representative. Omaha lawyer William Lindsay, who specializes in estate planning, said his professional experience has taught him that the issue should be addressed in the law. But he also has a personal interest because of a cousin who died while serving in the Navy. "We wanted to be able to get the email records, but we couldn't because nobody knew the password," Lindsay said. "We wanted to let her friends know she had died, but we didn't know all of them." Sen. John Wightman, who sponsored the measure at the urging of the state bar association, said he expects the Judiciary Committee to approve the bill, sending it to the full Legislature. Facebook spokesman Tucker Bounds said the company was surprised by the Oklahoma law and was working closely with Nebraska legislators on the latest proposal. The company declined to say how many people had requested access to accounts held by Oklahomans, but Bounds said it was relatively rare. "I can tell you there aren't people pouring out into the streets asking for access," Bounds said. Oregon could be the next state to take up the issue. The Oregon State Bar Association has formed a group to work on the matter and hopes to propose legislation next year. Portland lawyer Victoria Blachly said the plan will mirror the Oklahoma law, but it will also include a "virtual asset instruction letter" that lists online information and passwords, along with instructions for when someone dies or becomes incapacitated. "That's the part that social media providers have been wrestling with," Blachly said. Like others, Blachly said she began studying the issue after a young relative died and left social media accounts in limbo. Her top concern is the emotional value of social media accounts. "Some people say, 'Well, if I get hit by a bus, what do I care?"' she said. "The people who love you care very much about it." © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.![]()
Roslan Rahman | AFP | Getty ImagesWilliams found his password and emailed the company, asking administrators to maintain 22-year-old Loren Williams' account so she could pore through his posts and comments by his friends. But within two hours, she said, Facebook changed the password, blocking her efforts. "I wanted full and unobstructed access, and they balked at that," said Williams, recalling her son's death in 2005. "It was heartbreaking. I was a parent grasping at straws to get anything I could get." Now lawmakers and attorneys in at least two states are considering proposals that would require Facebook and other social networks to grant access to loved ones when a family member dies, essentially making the site contents part of a person's digital estate. The issue is growing increasingly important as people record more thoughts and experiences online and more disputes break out over that material. Williams, a second-grade teacher from the Portland suburbs, ultimately got back into her son's account, but it took a lawsuit and a two-year legal battle that ended with Facebook granting her 10 months of access before her son's page was removed. Nebraska is reviewing legislation modeled after a law in Oklahoma, which last year became the first state to take action. "Mementos, shoe boxes with photos. That, we knew how to distribute once someone passed away," said Ryan Kiesel, a former legislator who wrote the Oklahoma law. "We wanted to get state law and attorneys to begin thinking about the digital estate." Under Facebook's current policy, deaths can be reported in an online form. When the site learns of a death, it puts that person's account in a memorialized state. Certain information is removed, and privacy is restricted to friends only. The profile and wall are left up so friends and loved ones can make posts in remembrance. Facebook will provide the estate of the deceased with a download of the account data "if prior consent is obtained from or decreed by the deceased or mandated by law." If a close relative asks that a profile be removed, Facebook will honor that request, too. Like the Oklahoma law, the Nebraska bill would allow friends or relatives to take control of social media accounts if the deceased person lived in the state. The measure would treat Facebook, Twitter and email accounts as digital assets that could be closed or continued by an appointed representative. Omaha lawyer William Lindsay, who specializes in estate planning, said his professional experience has taught him that the issue should be addressed in the law. But he also has a personal interest because of a cousin who died while serving in the Navy. "We wanted to be able to get the email records, but we couldn't because nobody knew the password," Lindsay said. "We wanted to let her friends know she had died, but we didn't know all of them." Sen. John Wightman, who sponsored the measure at the urging of the state bar association, said he expects the Judiciary Committee to approve the bill, sending it to the full Legislature. Facebook spokesman Tucker Bounds said the company was surprised by the Oklahoma law and was working closely with Nebraska legislators on the latest proposal. The company declined to say how many people had requested access to accounts held by Oklahomans, but Bounds said it was relatively rare. "I can tell you there aren't people pouring out into the streets asking for access," Bounds said. Oregon could be the next state to take up the issue. The Oregon State Bar Association has formed a group to work on the matter and hopes to propose legislation next year. Portland lawyer Victoria Blachly said the plan will mirror the Oklahoma law, but it will also include a "virtual asset instruction letter" that lists online information and passwords, along with instructions for when someone dies or becomes incapacitated. "That's the part that social media providers have been wrestling with," Blachly said. Like others, Blachly said she began studying the issue after a young relative died and left social media accounts in limbo. Her top concern is the emotional value of social media accounts. "Some people say, 'Well, if I get hit by a bus, what do I care?"' she said. "The people who love you care very much about it." © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Villains Become Victims in <cite>Clone Wars</cite>' 'Massacre'
Compelling female heroines and villains are comparatively few and far between in the Star Wars universe. But The Clone Wars’ complicated, vengeful Sith apprentice Asajj Ventress, as well as her supernaturally powerful Nightsisters of Dathomir, are some of its best.
Too bad they’re probably all getting killed in Friday’s night’s episode, “Massacre,” previewed in the clip above.
Well, perhaps: A scant few ever truly die in sci-fi franchises as expansive as Star Wars, which are always on the lookout for reboot opportunities. After all, Ventress herself was supposedly killed by Anakin in Genndy Tartakovksy’s stunning 2003 Clone Wars animated series, and the entire second Star Wars trilogy is based on the archetypal Darth Vader, whose sacrifice closed out Return of the Jedi.
What goes around eventually comes around.
That said, “Massacre” offers Count Dooku and General Grievous (below) chances to renew their deflated evils. The former uses the latter to claim his murderous payback against Ventress and her sisterhood of intergalactic witches, who attempted to assassinate Dooku after he threw her aside like another spent Star Wars pawn.
The knotted conflict of “Massacre” kicks off a four-episode arc that promises to darkly extinguish The Clone Wars‘ rewarding fourth season. Screen the clips above and below and let us know if you think The Clone Wars’ fifth season, due on Cartoon Network this fall, can cap the series before the inevitable syndication beckons.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars airs Friday at 8 p.m./7 p.m. Central on Cartoon Network.
Scott Thill covers pop, culture, tech, politics, econ, the environment and more for Wired, AlterNet, Filter, Huffington Post and others. You can sample his collected spiels at his site, Morphizm.Follow @morphizm on Twitter.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Villains Become Victims in <cite>Clone Wars</cite>' 'Massacre'
Compelling female heroines and villains are comparatively few and far between in the Star Wars universe. But The Clone Wars’ complicated, vengeful Sith apprentice Asajj Ventress, as well as her supernaturally powerful Nightsisters of Dathomir, are some of its best.
Too bad they’re probably all getting killed in Friday’s night’s episode, “Massacre,” previewed in the clip above.
Well, perhaps: A scant few ever truly die in sci-fi franchises as expansive as Star Wars, which are always on the lookout for reboot opportunities. After all, Ventress herself was supposedly killed by Anakin in Genndy Tartakovksy’s stunning 2003 Clone Wars animated series, and the entire second Star Wars trilogy is based on the archetypal Darth Vader, whose sacrifice closed out Return of the Jedi.
What goes around eventually comes around.
That said, “Massacre” offers Count Dooku and General Grievous (below) chances to renew their deflated evils. The former uses the latter to claim his murderous payback against Ventress and her sisterhood of intergalactic witches, who attempted to assassinate Dooku after he threw her aside like another spent Star Wars pawn.
The knotted conflict of “Massacre” kicks off a four-episode arc that promises to darkly extinguish The Clone Wars‘ rewarding fourth season. Screen the clips above and below and let us know if you think The Clone Wars’ fifth season, due on Cartoon Network this fall, can cap the series before the inevitable syndication beckons.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars airs Friday at 8 p.m./7 p.m. Central on Cartoon Network.
Scott Thill covers pop, culture, tech, politics, econ, the environment and more for Wired, AlterNet, Filter, Huffington Post and others. You can sample his collected spiels at his site, Morphizm.Follow @morphizm on Twitter.
Friday, February 24, 2012
NetNet: Can America Become the Next Greece?
When conservatives worry about the size of the federal government’s budget deficits and the national debt ![[cnbc explains]](/CNBCexplainsicon1.gif){kind=small}
, liberals tend to point out that “America is not Greece.” This is certainly true. The U.S. economy is far healthier than the economy of Greece. We aren’t locked into a currency union that deprives us of monetary flexibility. Our government can never run out of money to service its debt because the debt is denominated in currency the government creates. The most important difference between the U.S. and Greece, however, is not where we are in our economic cycle or our monetary system. It’s the gap between the productivity of the American economy and the Greek economy. The core reason why Greece is unable to service its debt without aid from its neighbors is that its economy does not generate enough wealth. Even if Greece somehow put an end to the habitual tax-avoidance of its people, it could not service its debt without truly impoverishing its citizens through unsustainable wealth confiscation. The dearth of productivity and competitiveness explains, ironically, why Greece’s debts got so large to begin with. It’s people and government wanted to live beyond their means, to spend more than they produced. This is only possible if someone is willing to lend you the money to buy the excess goods and services. Most Greeks never really realized how unproductive their economy had become. In some sense, access to debt had concealed their long-running economic slump. It seemed that things were humming along just fine. This is one of the reasons Greeks are so shocked by what is being required by their creditors. It feels as if they are being looted, bossed around, sent orders from German and French bureaucrats. The Greeks just never internalized how dependent their economy had become on the capacity and willingness of more productive economies to lend to them. The productivity gap, of course, is not the result of nature or the wrath of some angry gods. It is the result of years of policies that made investing in productivity — both through capital investment and increases in skills — irrational. The generosity of the Greek government and the regulatory burdens placed on businesses made the relative rewards from business investment meager. This is important to keep in mind when considering the proposition that “America is not Greece.” It tells us we must zealously guard our productivity, protect our culture of competition and enshrine market processes almost as if they were the gifts of benevolent gods. America is not Greece. But if our productivity is sapped by too much regulation, by misbegotten monetary policy, by taxes that undermine incentives to earn, or by government spending that rewards business meeting political rather than market demand, we can become Greece. America can never be forced to default for lack of money. But our debt burden can become unsustainable — requiring either inflation or voluntary default — if our productivity does not improve as our debt grows. Follow John on Twitter. (Market and financial news, adventures in New York City, plus whatever is on his mind.) You can email him atdocument.write("");document.write("john.carney"+"@"+"nbcuni.com");document.write(''); .We also have two NetNet Twitter feeds. Follow CNBCnetnet for the best of the days posts, including breaking news. Follow NetNetDigest for a feed of every single post each day.You can also be our friend on Facebook. Or subscribe to John's Facebook page. We're on Google Plus too! Click here for John's Google+ page. Questions? Comments? Tips? Email us atdocument.write(""); document.write("NetNet"+"@"+"cnbc.com");document.write('');or send a text message to: 917-740-8477.Call us at 201-735-4638.
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