I'm always encouraged when stupidity rears its head outside the halls of the RIAA - at least I know that the problem is diffuse. What am I on about? Well, I've never been a huge fan of the OLPC project, and reading about the remote kill switch (via TechDirt) doesn't make me any fonder of the project:

Bender [OLPC president of software and content] says the laptops can be remotely shut down to prevent them being sold in black markets.

Like TechDirt, I'll ask the obvious question: if a struggling family in the third world decides to sell their PC in order to buy something they value more highly, who the heck is Bender to try and stand in their way? Second, are the OLPC guys as stupid as the DRM backers at the RIAA? Who do they think this technology will stop? Are they under some delusion that black marketeers won't be able to figure it out?

The more I hear about this project, the more I wonder why they are bothering.

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