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Showing posts from March, 2014

Equity crowdfunding alternatives for non-accredited investors

Update on Oct 30th, 2015 Finally, finally (deja vu?!), after months of waiting again, Title III (true startup investing for non-accredited investors) will be voted and approved (likely?!) : http://www.forbes.com/sites/chancebarnett/2015/10/27/sec-to-vote-on-title-iii-equity-crowdfunding-rulings-october-30th/http://www.forbes.com/sites/chancebarnett/2015/10/27/sec-to-vote-on-title-iii-equity-crowdfunding-rulings-october-30th/ Update on Mar 27th, 2015 Thankfully, finally, after years of waiting, the rest of this article will become nearly obsolete. Title IV rules are finally approved and released by the SEC: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ news/on-small-business/wp/ 2015/03/25/sec-finalizes-key- jobs-act-rules-for-small- businesses/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/ chancebarnett/2015/03/26/ infographic-sec-democratizes- equity-crowdfunding-with-jobs- act-title-iv/ http://crowdfundinglegalhub. com/2015/03/26/enter-the-mini- ipo-sec-approves-final-rules- for-title-iv-of-the-jobs-

Founding mothers of modern American libertarianism

The Tea Party movement and the recent resurgence of libertarianism have brought to the fore a renewed interest in, among many other related ideas and persons, the Constitution , the Founding Fathers and Ayn Rand . It was heartening to learn that Rand was but one of three illustrious women, along with Isabel Paterson and Rose Wilder Lane , now widely known as the founding mothers of American libertarianism . Quotes from and articles about these wonderful women are plentiful. Below, I copy a few: Isabel Paterson "Most of the harm in the world is done by good people, and not by accident, lapse or omission." Rose Wilder Lane "One thing I hate about the New Deal is that it is killing what, to me, is the American pioneering spirit. I simply do not know what to tell my own boys, leaving school and confronting this new world whose ideal is Security and whose practice is dependence upon government instead of upon one’s self.... All the old character-va

privacy on the cloud

There is a huge variety of cloud-based data archival and backup services available today. The following were shortlisted based on certain desirable features such as encrypted storage, personal encryption (zero knowledge), storage size and bandwidth limits and cross-platform support.  The pricing structure and other particular features are outlined below. The order reflects the slight preferences of the author. MEGA # machines : ? Pricing 50GB – Free 4TB - $12/m Crashplan # machines : up to 10 computers Pricing Unlimited - $13.99/m, $150/y Other features de-dup can run server-free, exchanging backup space with friends and family AltDrive # machines : 3 computers Pricing Unlimited - $9.95/m, $99/y Other features de-dup Bitcasa # machines :  up to  5 devices Pricing 20GB - Free (up to 3 devices) 1TB - $10/m, $99/y (up to 5 devices) 5TB - $49/m, $499/y (up to 5 devices) Unlimited - $99/m, $999/y (up to 5 devices) Elephant Drive

some contrarian views, maybe?

a.k.a the manifesto of the evil regressive who attempted to make progress . Here goes. I support labor unions, business regulation and labor rights.  I support a bigger minimum wage. I support environmental and natural resource stewardship and, in general, stewardship of the commons (regardless of whether man-made climate change is real or not ). Therefore, I support carbon and pollution taxes. I support sustainable development . I support Obama (gasp!) and Kerry on foreign policy, and, oppose McCain, Graham and other hawks, on the former's' approach of using diplomacy and economic sanctions in dealing with Russia and Iran. I support free public healthcare and education for the poorest of the poor. !!! Breathe. Let that sink in. Do all of the above make me a commie, a peacenik or a green? No, it doesn't. For the record, I still remain, at heart, a true  libertarian conservative  and a  Tea Partier , through and through. All of the

the resurgence of liberty

Political awareness and activism at the grassroots level is rising in the United States. The political spectrum in the United States is changing. Long seen as one-dimensional (left vs. right), there has been a strengthening and orthogonalization of at least one more axis -- that of liberty, and the lack thereof. Libertarianism is most certainly on the rise -- with a rising concern, across all demographics, for broader economic ( laissez-faire capitalism  and Austrian economics ) and personal freedoms ( civil libertarianism ). While a majority of the new libertarians come from the right , there is also growing number of left-libertarians as well as a significant exodus of liberals and progressives toward classical libertarianism. Fiscal conservatism is a defining characteristic of the traditional right-wing. This ideology is generally hawkish on spending, budget deficits and taxes and moderate on business regulation and social safety-net programs, advocating for fiscal and moneta