free market

New York woman solves her father’s cold case murder 26 years later

"A man arrested in Miami last Thursday who confessed to the killing of a New York restaurant owner 26 years ago was caught thanks to the persistence of a daughter who never forgot the man’s name. The NYPD had improperly closed the case on Martinez’s killing. Joselyn Martinez was just 9 years old when her father was shot and killed. In November 2012, she found her father’s cold case file in the NYPD’s 34th precinct archives. Martinez worked furiously for three months before approaching police again with evidence she’d collected online, paying less than $300 to track the man down. Armed with this new information, police acted swiftly." Continue reading →

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Sales of George Orwell’s 1984 skyrocket in wake of spying scandal

"Big brother is watching — sales of George Orwell’s dystopian novel '1984' have skyrocketed in the wake of revelations of US government surveillance. The centennial edition of the novel surged 7,005 percent on Amazon, according to the online retailer’s 'Mover and Shakers in Books' page that monitors biggest gainers in sales rank compared to 24 hours ago. 'Only 8 left in stock (more on the way),' potential buyers are advised when clicking on the novel’s icon. A hardback encompassing both '1984' and Orwell’s 'Animal Farm' jumped 314 percent." Continue reading →

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Edward Snowden And The Disruption Of Government

"What I want to focus on in this post is not Snowden himself, but what he represents, and what this may mean for governments and peoples over the next few decades. I believe we are in the midst of a centuries-long shift of power from state entities to the people those states have traditionally governed. What exactly the result of this evolution will be I don’t know, but I believe 'the State' as we know it has a limited lifespan and what replaces it, while perhaps imperfect, will be an improvement in terms of peace and prosperity. It can be explained in part by examining the research and teachings of noted icons of the business world Clayton Christensen, John Boyd, and Sun Tzu." Continue reading →

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Draper University Becomes the First Educational Institution to Accept Tuition in Bitcoin

"Draper University, a cutting edge boarding school for young entrepreneurs from all over the world, received its first tuition payment in Bitcoin for its summer session, which starts June 24. Draper University accepts various forms of tuition payments, including bartering for services, and now will also accept Bitcoin for tuition payments. The university, located in downtown San Mateo, offers an innovative program designed to inspire, cultivate, and educate students who dream to build companies that change the world around them. Draper University offers four sessions a year and is intended for young entrepreneurs between the ages of 18 to 26." Continue reading →

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Meet the world’s first Bitcoin baby

"Dr. C. Terence Lee, a fertility specialist based in Brea, Calif., flashes a photo of a beaming infant across a projection screen and announces: 'This baby was bought with bitcoins.' No, this isn't a black-market deal brokered in the Internet's shadowy corners. The child was born thanks to a frozen embryo transfer cycle paid for with bitcoins. Lee says it's the first time he's aware of that anyone has paid for fertility treatments that way. The baby is the biggest -- and definitely the cutest -- victory yet for Lee in his campaign to persuade his patients to pay him for his services with bitcoins." Continue reading →

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Colorado Governor Signs Marijuana Legalization Bills

"In a public ceremony at the state capitol in Denver Tuesday, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) signed into law four bills that will establish a legal, regulated marijuana market for adults and begin the development of a regulatory framework for industrial hemp production. The package of bills had passed the legislature earlier this month in accord with the requirements of Amendment 64, which won with 55% of the popular vote last November. That groundbreaking vote led Hickenlooper to sign an order legalizing marijuana possession and to appoint an Amendment 64 Implementation Task Force late last year, which provided guidance to the legislature." Continue reading →

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Burner Phone – A Simple and Anonymous Disposable Cell Phone

"Our Burner Kit is the simplest, most secure, and most affordable pre-paid cell phone kit in the US. The Burner Kit comes with a quality disposable cell phone, in addition to unlimited voice and SMS messaging for 30 days. After 30 days, just throw away your Burner Kit and you'll never have to worry about compromising your identity. We take your privacy seriously. You can purchase your Burner Kit using Credit or Debit card or Bitcoin (an anonymous digital crypto currency). Every time you make a purchase we'll package and ship your order, then destroy all transaction records in our system. We make it impossible to give or share your information with anyone." Continue reading →

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Sears Plans To Retrofit 2,500 “Ghostbox” Stores As Data Centers

"There are over a billion square feet of vacant commercial space in the US right now, most of it in the form of big box stores. This month, Sears announced the formation of a stand-alone company—the ominously-named Ubiquity Critical Environments LLC—to handle to conversion of thousands of Sears and KMart stores into data centers. Ultimately, the structural skeletons of these stores will house servers, chillers, and generators, as well as roof-mounted antennas. In a crushingly ironic twist, the centers will target medium-sized e-commerce retailers—the very companies helping to put department stores out of business." Continue reading →

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Texas Gun Sales Are Off the Charts

"Gander Mountain is opening four new stores in Texas. The company describes itself as a 'firearms super center.' Demand is high and growing. The stores are for outdoorsmen, but these days, indoorsmen are walking in the stores’ doors too. Texas is gun-friendly. The boom in ammunition sales shows no sign of tapering off. This marks a change in sentiment. Gun owners are responding to political threats in the Northeast, but in the West and South, there is no trace of gun control sentiment." Continue reading →

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