Jack Layton and his Legacy

One of Jack Layton's final words.

     Jack Layton is not a person you meet everyday, especially one that's in politics. He was known as the "healthcare" guy in our country for his countless acts to enforce healthcare and make life a better place. He was different. He wasn't the same old politician you see everyday. He had this thing where people like him, friend or foe. I always thought it wasn't true until I say friends and foes mourning his death. He was a true politician.

     He became captain of the NDP in 2003. At that time the NDP had become the laughing stock of the House of Commons and was losing grip on what it was saying. Then Jack came along even though he was only a city counselor before with no experience in Ottawa politics. He then turned a losing party into a winner with the 2011 election turning the party into the Official Opposition which it has never reached before. Furthermore, he influenced our health care system and negotiating with other parties to get not only what he wanted, but what all Canadians wanted: healthcare and affordable housing. He gave the basic necessities we all need but forget most of the time.

    He was also one of the few or should I say only leader that could actually connect with voters. Jack managed to know what people want and how to connect with them. That really showed when Quebec was first painted orange NDP for the first time after the Bloc had a monopoly on Quebec. He was a leader who was serious and knew how to have a good time. He always has a simple message so everyone can actually get it. Not only that, he looks at the good side of things. He doesn't show a lot of attack ads, instead showing ways the NDP would be different instead of saying that the Conservatives are creating more tax cuts for businesses or Michael Ignatief is corrupt since he lived in America previously.

     Jack Layton may have died on August 22, 2011 peacefully to unite a country and to bring change. He doesn't care about friends or foes as he treats them all the same. He works with people instead of fighting and tried to get things done. A type of man we won't see for a long time. A state funeral has been planned by Prime Minister Stephen Harper which is very unusual showing that Layton made many friends even though they were political foes.

Do you miss Limewire? Comparing whats left in the legal department.

Limewire Website Currently After A Court Injunction

     Limewire was known as a music store for free people (people who didn’t want to pay). They offered every song you could possibly see on any other music store like Rhapsody or iTunes, but at a better quality, format, and cost (free). Yet does shutting down this powerhouse mean the end of piracy on music itself. No, but it sends a clear message that paid methods aren’t enough or just don’t work. If we compare this service to others we will see major differences and ideas that other services don’t hang on to.

AAC format and what it looks like in iTunes.

     Limewire offered music in many formats. It may have not offered it in every single format, but it gave you more choice than iTunes which is AAC and works on Apple products only or Rhapsody’s low quality MP3s. The people who share on Limewire offer more choices than what you can get in iTunes. It can give you OGG, MP3, AAC, etc. Limewire gives the user greater flexibility.

     The service offered great benefits to Independent Artists.  This allowed artists who didn’t have enough capital get noticed around the world by downloaders using Limewire. The service basically offered free advertising for artists and publicity. Limewire helped to promote the work by offering it as a download like anything else. Then people started listening and sharing and the independent artists were pleased.

Amazon MP3 offers 69 cent downloads.

    

     The music is free, but it causes a rethinking. Limewire offers brand name music at a low price, nothing. This gave users an idea: Why should I pay for music that I can get for free? Next, a response, the RIAA started suing people over the DMCA act. This also caused a Renaissance in the music industry; the removal of DRM from legal downloads as they started to realize that people are downloading because they can find things for free that are better than paid. This made iTunes remove DRM and Amazon to charge $0.69 music downloads, far lower than the industry standards.

     Limewire may have caused havoc in US copyright laws, but it did change things in the way consumers get their music. As they say, more competition equals more return for the consumer.

Space Shuttle Prezi

Space Shuttle on Prezi

Here's a Prezi on the Space Shuttle that I made. In commemoration of the final Space Shuttle launch STS-135 (Atlantis). Its also my first time using it.