Today’s Links: December 6, 2011

OPINION

TERENCE CORCORAN: “The Dark Side of Green Energy
“In the annals of Canadian green energy policy, nothing stands out like Ontario’s headlong rush into becoming a world leader in the business. In the belief that politics can defy economics, politicians all over the world are making the big bet that they can overturn the hard rules of supply and demand, the role of prices and the limits of innovation by pushing the right policy buttons. ”

NILE GARDINER: “Paul Krugman’s Big Government Prescription for Europe Proves That U.S. Liberals Are Stuck in a Time Warp
“All over Europe governments have begun to implement austerity measures in an effort to rein in spending and reduce crippling budget deficits. It is hard to find a major European leader these days still advocating the kind of large-scale stimulus spending championed by the Obama Administration in the United States over the past three years.”

DAVID POST: “Stop the Online Piracy Act
“In several recent postings (here and here, for example) I called on all interested persons to come to the Internet’s defense against a spate of truly dreadful bills now making their way through Congress (the “Protect IP Act” and SOPA, the “Stop Online Piracy Act”). Larry Downes, always a thoughtful voice on tech matters, has an interesting piece in Forbes about the rather astonishing outcry that the bills have engendered. As someone who’s been doing Internet law for almost 20 years, I can’t remember any issue galvanizing public opinion in quite this way since the 1996 “Communications Decency Act” [outlawing “indecency” on the Net — good luck with that!].”

NEWS

TECHNOLOGY – FCC to Set Standards for Mass Disruptions of Americans’ Telecommunications
“Following an investigation into a public transit authority that cut off mobile phone service amid a protest earlier this year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said recently that it would attempt to outline the circumstances under which officials may legally disrupt wireless communications in the U.S.”

CULTURE – Overweight in Metal, This Band Tries to Play Tunes in Forex
“The rock group Metallica has made a living for the past 30 years growling about death in apocalyptic anthems like ‘The Four Horsemen’ and ‘Enter Sandman.'” Now, the heavy-metal pioneers are sleeping with one eye open for a different reason: Europe’s financial crisis.”