New Zealand About to Legalize Spying on Citizens?; Plague of Measles Erupts 15 Years After Autism Panic

To view a web version of this message, click here Send this message to a friend New Zealand About to Legalize Spying on Citizens? Apache OpenOffice 4.0 Debuts With Major New Features Plague of Measles Erupts 15 Years After Autism Panic Analytics Couldn't Prevent Six Massive Hollywood Blockbuster Flops Radical Plan For Saving Microsoft's Surface RT Hot Comment: "And this is why the 'militarization of the police' is a problem. You're not a..." From the Vault: Recent Grad Sues College Because She Can't Find a Job Watch It: Privacy, the NSA and You Poll Booth: My NSA-induced paranoia level... New Zealand About to Legalize Spying on Citizens? After having admitted that it illegally spied on its citizens or residents 88 times since 2003, the New Zealand government is now proposing to expand its spying powers. And it looks like the bill, which has (not surprisingly) met with opposition by a number of groups, has enough votes to pass Parliament. Sound Off>> Apache OpenOffice 4.0 Debuts With Major New Features The many new enhancements in Apache OpenOffice 4.0, include some big improvements to graphics handling and anti-aliasing that makes for smoother bitmaps. The release also comes with a new sidebar that is based on IBM Symphony's implementation. Sound Off>> Plague of Measles Erupts 15 Years After Autism Panic Several news outlets reporting on the recent measles outbreak in Wales cite public health experts who lay the blame for the dramatic increase in cases squarely at the feet of Andrew Wakefield's suggestion that the MMR vaccine might cause autism and the subsequent media coverage in 1998. Sound Off>> Analytics Couldn't Prevent Six Massive Hollywood Blockbuster Flops Hollywood is more reliant than ever on analytics to predict how movies will do, so how did six mega-budget films--"R.I.P.D.," "After Earth," "White House Down," "Pacific Rim," and "The Lone Ranger"--that featured big stars, bigger explosions, and top-notch special effects fail so spectacularly in recent weeks? Sound Off>> Radical Plan For Saving Microsoft's Surface RT Microsoft announced last week that it would take a $900 million write-off on its Surface RT tablets. Now the company has a scary decision to make: double down on its promotional efforts, hoping that sales will eventually pick up, or scrub the whole project. But there is another way to restart its (metaphorical) heart. Sound Off>>   Re: Wake up "And this is why the 'militarization of the police' is a problem. You're not a soldier, this isn't war, and you aren't an occupying force dealing with insurgents. If you think you are, and you treat all non-police as potential threats, you need to turn in your badge and gun and get psychological help." --by CptNerd Read More>>   Recent Grad Sues College Because She Can't Find a Job Four years ago, a "C" (not the programming language) student sued her alma mater for the full cost of her tuition and then some because she has been unable to find a job in the three months since her graduation. Read More>>  Privacy, the NSA and You SlashTV: It's been about a month a half since Edward Snowden's initial disclosures through the pages of the Guardian and the Washington Post and it has had a pretty significant impact. Journalist and long-time privacy advocate Declan Mccullagh discusses what's happening on the privacy front in the wake those revelations.  Watch the Video>> My NSA-induced paranoia level: They could not care less about me They might be watching what sites I visit They have a detailed file about me Same as above, and they are out to get me They're about to break down my door Living off the grid with CowboyNeal Cast Your Vote>>   Follow Slashdot on Twitter and Facebook. To unsubscribe, click here or send an email to: unsubscribe-213087@elabs10.com To ensure delivery of this newsletter to your inbox and to enable images, please add slashdot@newsletters.slashdot.org to your e-mail address book or safe senders list. Slashdot | 594 Howard Street, Suite 300 | San Francisco, CA 94105 To view our Privacy Policy click here.