NDAs are a civil matter

Molly has a really good explanation of the legal issues involved in the Apple-vs-web sites (not really “bloggers”) suits:

The violation of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) is – read this carefully – not a criminal act. This is why comparing the actions of those who might have violated a NDA and those who published the information to murderers and thieves is erroneous by the standards of U.S. law.

What may exist if a NDA is proven to have been breached is what is known as a tortious interference with business. Breach of a NDA may result in fines, or other civil ramifications, but most decidedly not criminal ones.

You see, here in the U.S. we aren’t supposed to mix our business interests (which are heavily regulated by the government already) with those civil liberties granted us via the Constitution and its amendments.

fake news

no, not the daily show. the times has picked up on the bush administration’s practice of making fake news reports with fake reporters and passing them off as real:

To a viewer, each report looked like any other 90-second segment on the local news. In fact, the federal government produced all three. The report from Kansas City was made by the State Department. The “reporter” covering airport safety was actually a public relations professional working under a false name for the Transportation Security Administration. The farming segment was done by the Agriculture Department’s office of communications.

logic puzzle

Conrad, Charles, and Eugene live next door to each other. One is an engineer, one is a teacher, and one is a lawyer. Determine each person’s occupation based on these 3 clues:

1. Charles lives in the middle apartment.
2. When Eugene goes away, his dog is fed by the teacher.
3. The engineer knocks on Conrad’s wall when his stereo is too loud.