So Apple has received a design patent for something that looks vaguely like a tablet PC. The patent itself is vague enough, but the pictures of the device are interesting. Where’s the keyboard?

I wouldn’t put it past Apple to find a novel way of designing, programming, and marketing a tablet PC with no built-in keyboard. I can’t really think of how a design like that would fly with consumers (where would I type my passwords?), but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done.

I remember that when Apple announced the iPod Mini, a lot of people had a hard time seeing why anyone would buy an iPod with 30% capacity for only $50 less. But Apple tapped into a booming market, sales skyrocketed, and now my sister wants one for her birthday.

So; whither the keyboardless tablet Mac?

Take the next two minutes to send a fax to your Senators and urge them to repeal the Real ID Act. This is a noxious bit of public policy that will turn driver’s licenses into a national ID card with dangerous implications for privacy and security. Find out more or go read the bill yourself.

Write to your Senators to oppose the Real ID Act. If you don’t have the patience or time (or interest) to write something, then just copy-and-paste what I wrote. It’s better than doing nothing.

I am writing to express my outrage at the Real ID Act, which was attached to H.R.1268, an emergency spending bill, and passed as part of that bill without any substantive debate.

The Real ID Act is essentially a mandate for a national identification card. It will require personal information on every citizen (including a permanent home address) to be stored in a machine-readable format on every state ID. This will lead to new, even more dangerous forms of identity theft than Americans face today. It will endanger judges, police, and political figures by requiring their home address to be on public record and easily searchable. Worst, it will encourage both public and private organizations to use a driver’s license as a universal mechanism to monitor and track citizens’ activities.

I support the passage of H.R.1268, a bill which provides emergency funds for a number of very valuable priorities. However, that this requirement for a national identification card was quietly added to the bill—without debate and without an opportunity for a public response—is a perversion of the democratic traditions which make this nation great.

I urge all my representatives in the Congress to work to reverse the Real ID Act, so that driver’s licenses will remain a part of the sovereignty of our great States, instead of a dangerous threat to the privacy and security of every American citizen. Thank you for taking the time to read my comments.

I’m sure everyone heard today’s news that the broadcast flag has been shot down by a federal appeals court. It goes to show that the Vast Global Conspiracy doesn’t always succeed (and that the movie studios will have to innovate, not litigate, for their business to keep working).

Without the broadcast flag, more companies will be able to compete in the market for television hardware that innovation will happen faster, produce cheaper products, and save you money in the long run.

So give some of that future savings back. If you haven’t already, go donate some money to Public Knowledge and the Electronic Frontier Foundation.