This is just bizarre:
Fire officials in Bellevue, Wash., have tracked down the apparent culprit in a $200,000 fire to the back of a home and they found that, well, nobody is to blame, KIRO-TV reports.
Turns out that sunshine beaming through a dog’s glass water bowl on a bright sunny day combined to start the fire on the wood deck.
Read more.
I learned today that last week the Federal Trade Commission filed suit against a telemarketing company and a car warranty company allegedly involved in the car warranty robocalls. According to the FTC press release:
The complaints were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on May 14, 2009. The complaint against the robocaller names as defendants a Florida-based company called Voice Touch Inc., and two of its principals, James and Maureen Dunne. It also names an Illinois-based company affiliated with Voice Touch called Network Foundations, LLC and a principal in that company, Damian Kohlfeld. The second complaint names a Florida-based company called Transcontinental Warranty Inc., which sells extended auto warranties, and the company’s president and CEO, Christopher D. Cowart.
That’s all fine and good, but these names do not match up with the documents sent to me by people who were unlucky enough to purchase the warranties. Those documents clearly say “Great Atlantic Warranty.” So, while some enforcement is better than none, I’m afraid there are some bandits still to be rounded up.
I’ve got no appointments tonight and I couldn’t be happier. I picked up a cold this weekend and there’s nothing I’m looking forward to more than a good night’s sleep!
Cory Doctorow takes on the telecoms in an article in the Guardian today. Cory talks about the dangers of traffic shaping and why metered billing in ISPs would chill Internet growth. He also reminds us that telecoms are riding high on the public’s dime through the use of public right of way, a point I made here before.
It’s worth a read.
