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Tuesday, August 31, 2010 13:30
Cast of "Castle" dressed to kill
Monday, August 30, 2010 13:57
'Nathan Fillion - this dude is straight off the meat rack, yo!'
Saturday, August 28, 2010 20:28
Joss Whedon talks to The Doctor
Friday, August 27, 2010 20:53
Chicago & Melbourne, VIC Australia CSTS Charity events Saturday, August 28, 2010.
Friday, August 27, 2010 15:24
Not so shiny: Plenty of drama for Buffy creator Joss Whedon
Friday, August 27, 2010 15:17
Adam Baldwin appearing at Polaris 25 -- TORONTO
MORE FIREFLY NEWS...
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FIREFLYFANS.NET CENTRAL |
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Friday, June 26, 2009 08:41
TIMES READ: 10018
FFF.NET loses main source of income to support site.
HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Well, no other way to say this, but my State Government just took away FFF.NET's main source of income for funding the site.
Nothing more I can do at this point.
Quote:
We regret to inform you that the Hawaii state legislature has passed an unconstitutional tax collection scheme that, unless vetoed soon by Governor Lingle, would leave Amazon.com little choice but to end its relationships with Hawaii-based Associates. You are receiving this e-mail because our records indicate that you are an Amazon Associate and resident of Hawaii.
Please note that this is not an immediate termination notice and you are still a valued participant in the Associates Program. All referral fees earned on qualified traffic will continue to be paid as planned.
But because the new law is drafted to go into effect July 1st, we will have to terminate the participation of all Hawaii residents in the Amazon Associates program on or before that day. After the termination day, we will no longer pay any referral fees for customers referred to Amazon.com or Endless.com nor will we accept new applications for the Associates program from Hawaii residents.
The unfortunate consequences of this legislation on Hawaii residents like you were explained in detail to key senators and representatives in Honolulu, including the sponsors, committee leaders, and House-Senate conferees. We also have explained by letter these unfortunate consequences to Governor Lingle, and have twice requested her veto.
Note that other states, including Maryland, Minnesota, and Tennessee, considered nearly identical schemes, but rejected these proposals largely because of the adverse impact on their states’ residents.
Governor Lingle's website is http://hawaii.gov/gov, the Hawaii legislature's website is http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/, and additional information may be obtained from the Performance Marketing Alliance at http://www.performancemarketingalliance.com/.
We thank you for being part of the Amazon Associates program, and we will apprise you of next steps.
Sincerely,
Amazon.com
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PEULSAR5
We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 08:53 |
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O.K. So what do we need to do.
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Well how annoying is that?!
Any chance you have a friend in a different state who could manage the referrals and money for you?
...or is that somehow illegal?
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 09:10 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by BigRichard:
Well how annoying is that?!
Any chance you have a friend in a different state who could manage the referrals and money for you?
...or is that somehow illegal?
It's not illegal, one can setup an out of state entity, but it's really ridiculous to do that in my case.
I guess we can inundate the governor's mailbox with angry emails from every single Browncoat on the planet, but that would probably just piss them off.
I'll know more about the matter tomorrow, will keep you all posted.
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What can we do to help, and how much "help" are we talking about?
Keep in mind remaining CSTS events are gatherings of browncoats where word could be spread. Would we need any ident process to accept fundage on behalf of fff.net and also do you have a snail mail address to send "help" to?
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ECGORDON
There's no place I can be, since I found Serenity
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 11:15 |
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If the worst does come to pass, at least you already have a PayPal Donation button in place. All of us could contribute a little that way to keep the shiniest website afloat, right? Who's with me?
wo men ren ran zai fei xing.
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They seem to be asking you in an indirect way to write Governor Lingle and urge him/her to veto the bill, as it is, in Amazon's words: "Unconstitutional."
Worth a shot. Gotta give action to get action. I notice others are urging for a veto, so it could only help to add your voice to the outcry.
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HERO
"Ultimately a hero is a man who would argue with the gods, and so awakens devils to contest his vision."- Norman Mailer (1963)
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 12:33 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by Peulsar5:
O.K. So what do we need to do.
Aside from bombing Pearl Harbor, I suggest you all wait and see.
You could also call the Governor's office to make your opinion known.
Failing that you could sue.
When that's thrown out of Court...run for the legislature (or just vote Republican).
Hawaii's House is 45-6 Democrat. The Senate is 23-2 Democrat.
Give Governor Lingle, the first Republican Governor since 1962, some help and I'm sure she'll give you some help.
H
"Hero. I have come to respect you"- Chrisisall, 2009.
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SAB39
Ooh! Synchronizers!
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 13:52 |
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Can someone explain why we're blaming the governor rather than blaming Amazon? The email from Amazon is pretty light on details about exactly what is supposedly wrong with this tax collection scheme and if it was truly "unconstitutional" as they claim then there's these little things called courts that can remedy that. And a company the size of Amazon has no shortage of lawyers.
Sounds to me like Amazon doesn't like the law and they're trying to translate that dislike into political pressure on the politician they're unhappy with.
I could be wrong - certainly governments really do do epicly stupid things all the time. But I'd expect that if that were the case they'd elaborate a little more on what this tax provision consists of and WHY it means they can't do business any more.
Either way, in the absence of further information I'm gonna assume the blame lies on Amazon here, not the state. Until someone provides a reason to believe that this tax provision really is as bad as they are claiming, anyway.
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YINYANG
 "Hell. Fine. Be like that."
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 16:08 |
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Sab- Here's an article that talks about the tax:
http://tinyurl.com/hawaiitax
It mentions that the Supreme Court ruled a similar situation unconstitutional in North Dakota.
Quote:
The U.S. Supreme Court, in Quill Corp. v. North Dakota in 1992, ruled that it was an unconstitutional burden on interstate commerce for North Dakota to apply a use tax on an out-of-state office supply company that had customers but no outlets or sales representatives in the state. The court found there must be a "substantial nexus" through a physical presence in the state to prevent the reach of state taxes from interfering with the national economy.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 16:39 |
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Quote:
Can someone explain why we're blaming the governor rather than blaming Amazon?
Here is what someone else more knowledgeable than I about the matter wrote:
Quote:
The bill will require any online merchant (Amazon.com, Buy.com, etc) that has affiliates in Hawaii to pay Hawaii sales tax. Meaning if Amazon.com has affiliates in Hawaii they must then charge Hawaii residents 4.5% sales tax on all their purchases.
Currently Amazon.com and almost all other merchants do not charge sales tax on items sold to Hawaii residents. If this bill were to pass they would have to charge sales tax if they have affiliates. To avoid this tax many merchants such as Amazon.com will just dump all their Hawaii affiliates and advertising contracts with Hawaii residents. By doing this they won't have Hawaii affiliates and will not have to charge Hawaii state tax.
As you can see this is a not a good bill because what ends up happening is Hawaii will still not get their sales tax and on top of that they hurt Hawaii affiliates by getting them kicked off advertising network such as Amazon.com, Linkshare and Commision Junction.
So, basically, it comes down to economics. Many States need money for their coffers and see this as a means of collecting more taxes.
Amazon feels that its unconstitutional for them to have to pay a State Sales Taxes if they neither sell items out of that particular State nor have consumers who are purchasing from within that State.
I could be wrong about this and will have to look into it further, but from Amazon's perspective, the Associates are simply advertising for them and receives a commission for that advertising.
Bottom line is, come next week, I can no longer use Amazon as a means to fund the site, which is pretty annoying. We were just breaking even. So whatever expenses that needs paying will have to be paid out of my own pockets,through donations from the site members, and Google ads, which are dismal and not worth mentioning.
In any case, more later, gotta go work.
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QUANDOM
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 17:30 |
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And now, for an off the wall response:
Let them relegalize and tax their most valuable cash crop - I of course refer to marijuana. It's possible to finance a large chunk of government that way - look at NH where the state has a monopoly on selling alcohol, and no state income tax.
Failing that, we'll tax ourselves to keep this invaluable sit alive.
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CHRISISALL
"Over the years you have slurred the meaning of the words, WE...THE...PEOPLE"
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 17:49 |
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Haken, when ya get a chance, throw out some numbers- like as in, how much from each of us and how regularly, K?
The laughing Chrisisall
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KWICKO
Officially the Angriest Man on the Internet™.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 17:59 |
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Well, hell, Haken, I don't like the sound of this at all! One, it's screwing you, and in turn US, out of our favorite place. Two, *I* sell to customers in Hawaii who then resell to THEIR customers in Hawaii. As such, wouldn't my customers (groomers and pet supply retailers) then be required to pay the sales tax to me, and I in turn have to pay it to the state? Of is it enough that THEIR customers pay THEM the sales tax in the state?
I'm not really in any position to start charging each state's sales tax to every damn customer I sell to in that particular state, and this kind of stuff pisses me off. This isn't helping small customers; it's hindering them. It's not going to help the economy at all, either, because fewer and fewer small businesses will be able to participate in fewer and fewer states. The mega-box conglomerates will, however, still be able to compete, because they have the wherewithal to devote entire departments to keeping track of, and following, each state's ever-more Draconian rules...
Mike
Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
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CELLARDOOR
Once you've been in Serenity, you never leave. You just learn to live there.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 21:23 |
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Absolutely, let us know how we can help. These here folk are the first Browncoats I found after discovering Firefly, and there's too much history here to let it just disappear. We're waiting for updates on the situation when you have time.
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GILOVE2DANCE
 Shiny! Let's be bad guys.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 22:58 |
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I suggest we also let the Signal podcast know and perhaps Qmx...the Signal can get the word out so people can donate and Qmx might be willing to sponsor us or point us in a direction to some sponsors.
As Browncoats, we are notorious for doing the impossible and banding together to raise incredible funds; so throw us a number to raise and we'll start raising!!
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GILOVE2DANCE
Shiny! Let's be bad guys.
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Friday, June 26, 2009 - 23:02 |
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Also...should we start clicking on the google ads more to raise more money? ^___^
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BYTEMITE
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 00:44 |
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Um, hi, I'm feeling pretty dumb, but when I click on the paypal button here it just gives me the option of sending money to myself... Anyone know the account for this site?
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Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Quote:
Originally posted by BigRichard:
Well how annoying is that?!
Any chance you have a friend in a different state who could manage the referrals and money for you?
...or is that somehow illegal?
It's not illegal, one can setup an out of state entity, but it's really ridiculous to do that in my case.
Hey Haken, if you do decide you want to set up an entity in CA, I would be happy to work on that with you.
---
I don't need a gorram back-spaceship driver!!!
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CANTTAKESKY
Take me out to the black. Tell 'em I ain't comin' back.
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 03:41 |
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That really bites. I make all my Amazon purchases through FFF. My way of supporting a site I appear to be addicted to. Now how am I going to feed my habit?
Keep us updated on how we can help.
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INVICTUS12
Nice to see someone from the homeland.
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 04:00 |
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definitely count me in on helping. Anything we can do... This doesn't seem like a smart decision on their part, I mean that loses alot of advertising pull...but yes, I agree it'll take more than this to bring us down.
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We pay our taxes in NH, we just pay them as property taxes. Don't be fooled the state gets their taxes one way or another.
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AISLING
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 11:56 |
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...wow.
My first thought about the letter was that the phrasing Amazon used as "unconstitutional tax collection scheme" just strikes me as plain manipulative. They are a large enough company that a letter that simply sounded whiny wouldn't make it out the door. Unless it was meant to steer your opinion/emotions to a specific end. But, i tend to be suspicious about stuff lol!
Keep us posted to what we need to do. I don't have much this month, medical bills have made me choose between buying food for my family and going to the CSTS event in my neighborhood. Le sigh. I am sure I can spare at least $5 (I am sure i can find someway to help and who needs eggs anyway!)
*hugs* to all my fellow Browncoats.
We're still flying... and somedays it's enough.
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BULLETT
i believe in never, i believe in all the way
but belief is not to notice, believe is just some faith
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 13:18 |
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i would love to help, just let us know what we can do.
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DEWRASTLER
We got to go to the crappy town where I'm a hero.
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Saturday, June 27, 2009 - 14:10 |
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I'm with everybody else on this one, Haken. Whatever you need, I'd be willing to help. I've been frequenting this site since the BDM was released, and I'd hate to see something happen to it.
________________________________
People who don't care about anything will never understand the people who do
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We could get the 76th to invade Hawaii.
On a more serious note, if there are any organizations working to get this bill repealed, we could give them money.
For the immediate future, I would be willing to donate money to help keep this site afloat.
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ASTRIA
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 03:37 |
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I just officially joined now, but I've been a "guest" floating around here for ages, and always appreciate the shiny news and discussions and such, so I'd hate to see this site go down!
Like others have said, I'm short on the moneys, but if you give us some figures, I'd see if I can scrounge up a few bucks! And if there's anything else I can do (I'm not aware of any such silly laws in PA) I'll certainly be happy to help out!
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This is stinks!
I'm definitely in to help. Again, just give us some concrete numbers, and I'll fire up the paypal.
Dear Diary: Today I was pompous and my sister was crazy. Today, we were kidnapped by hillfolk never to be seen again. It was the best day ever.
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FREMDFIRMA
 Anarchist Propaganda Minister
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 12:33 |
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Amazon just upped the ante in regard to similar go-se coming out of North Carolina.
http://www.news-record.com/content/2009/06/26/article/amazon_cuts_relationships_with_affiliates
I am completely onboard with Amazons response to this, as I happen to be well aware that a "temporary"* or "emergency" tax is just one more bite that will grow and grow infinitely and flow into the pockets of the well-connected while the powers that be find other ways to stick the knife in using the same excuses over and over.
Well, the line must be drawn somewhere, and here's as good a place as any.
My money is on Amazon in this one, and as soon as the public bares a few teeth on it, the politicos will quickly back down, pretend it never happened, and pat the beast on the head till it calms down... while looking for some other way to steal from it.
We're Browncoats, folk - the difficult we do immediately, the impossible just takes a bit longer, we're downright mighty n stuff!
-Frem
PS: No Tax is ever "temporary" - here's a classic example.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_telephone_excise_tax
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SISTER
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 15:09 |
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anything we can do to help, Haken, just let us know.
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DMI
Expired, forgotten, spoiled rotten.
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 16:56 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by Fremdfirma:
Amazon just upped the ante in regard to similar go-se coming out of North Carolina.
http://www.news-record.com/content/2009/06/26/article/amazon_cuts_relationships_with_affiliates
I am completely onboard with Amazons response to this, as I happen to be well aware that a "temporary"* or "emergency" tax is just one more bite that will grow and grow infinitely and flow into the pockets of the well-connected while the powers that be find other ways to stick the knife in using the same excuses over and over.
Well, the line must be drawn somewhere, and here's as good a place as any.
My money is on Amazon in this one, and as soon as the public bares a few teeth on it, the politicos will quickly back down, pretend it never happened, and pat the beast on the head till it calms down... while looking for some other way to steal from it.
We're Browncoats, folk - the difficult we do immediately, the impossible just takes a bit longer, we're downright mighty n stuff!
-Frem
PS: No Tax is ever "temporary" - here's a classic example.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_telephone_excise_tax
I don't know, that article just makes it seem like we're caught in the middle of pissing war. I was going to suggest we all buy whatever we can before the deadline but now I'm definitely in favor of just handing the cash straight to Haken. Maybe we could do it PBS style and have a webcast telethon to raise money. Get some extra from the show to sing a terrible rendition of the Firefly Theme and then say call the number paypal operators are standing by.
-e
A blog on the struggles of an unpublished writer: http://www.blogiversity.org/blogs/dmi/default.aspx
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THEREUR
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 17:28 |
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Haken,
First of all, thank you for running FFF.net! Secondly, you just let us know when and how to rally.
At first blush, I think the PBS subscriber model idea could be the way to go, with a semi-annual, monthly, or quarterly reminder to help keep FFF.net flying. In the meantime, I am sending a little cashy money your way.
Thanks again Haken!
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Quote:
Maybe we could do it PBS style and have a webcast telethon to raise money. Get some extra from the show to sing a terrible rendition of the Firefly Theme and then say call the number paypal operators are standing by.
-e
That would be epic. A few other ideas for a telethon:
Prior to the telethon, we hold a vote for the top 5 episodes. Throughout the telethon, we announce each one in reverse order, with #5 at the beginning and #1 at the end.
A recruiting ad for the 76th Independent Battalion.
But... FOR THE LOVE OF EXPLOSIVES!
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I didn't read through the thread, so sorry if its been brought up already, but maybe someone can set up a table at D*C to start a fund?
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CHAPTERANDVERSE
"Dear Diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy"
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 19:03 |
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As with everyone above, ready and willing to help in any way....
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11THHOUR
Meow
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 19:25 |
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I just made some purchases on Amazon through your links to help out a bit... but I know it's gonna take a lot more than that to keep FFF.net running.
I'm sure the folks here would be happy to toss in some coin each month to keep this shiny site in the Black up and running. Maybe you can set up some kind of little graph next to your PayPal donate button. The graph could track donations per month and show if the site expenses are being covered. The bar could display 50%, or 63%, etc., and if it's getting near the end of the month and more coin is needed then folks can toss in what they can.
Just a thought. Let us know when you've got a plan, or even a rough sketch... we can work with a rough sketch.
11th
>>>}———————————————)))======<[]>======(((———————————————{<<<
"Because teenage pranks are fun when you're about to die!" - Hoban Washburne
Firefly/Serenity Guerilla Marketing Posters ~ http://the11thhour.home.att.net
Cafe Press Shop ~ http://www.cafepress.com/11thhourart
Spread the word today ~ Give the gift of Firefly: http://www.apple.com/itunes
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AMDOBELL
Sharing a love of fanfic is the most fun I've had with my clothes on.
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Sunday, June 28, 2009 - 21:12 |
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Please let me know how to help. If needing cashy money is there an address I can send a donation? Not sure how you intend to work this HAKEN but I am in the UK, a widow and a pensioner, so will be wanting to send my money by post. Would also like to know whether it would be a monthly donation or whatever. That is, if the big money grabbing *hundan* don't come to their senses and kick this stupid idea into touch. I mean, how much money are they going to lose setting up this taxation scheme when companies like Amazon drop their associates like a hot brick? Somebody at the top of their murky food chain isn't thinking this through. I'm thinking they are from the shallow end of the gene pool.
Ali D :~)
You can't take the sky from me...
UK Browncoats
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Keep us updated and let us know what you need. I can make a monthly donation thru PayPal and carry others, maybe a few of the student writers that post fic:)
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Monday, June 29, 2009 - 02:48 |
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Hi all,
First off, thank you all for your support. I was at my daughter's Girl Scout Camp this weekend and couldn't followup on what's been happening with this Amazon thing since Friday and also to send a personal thank you note to all of you who have donated money. I will definitely send those as soon as I can.
I'll try and get caught up as soon as I can and post an update.
Till then, you can follow me on Twitter if you want or become my friend on Facebook for any updates that I might post.
On Twitter, it's: http://twitter.com/haken
On Facebook, it's http://www.facebook.com/shinyuniverse
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DUN
Anyhow
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Monday, June 29, 2009 - 05:03 |
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Even though I usually fall asleep when the word"TAX" is branded about(it,s a reflex action like fear and run)I'm all ears and waiting for further instructions.
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INVICTUS12
Nice to see someone from the homeland.
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Monday, June 29, 2009 - 05:13 |
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Take your time. We all have RL things to do. Thank you for keeping us updated. We are here to help.
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STEWIEJ84
KMC Browncoat
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Monday, June 29, 2009 - 08:46 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by ecgordon:
If the worst does come to pass, at least you already have a PayPal Donation button in place. All of us could contribute a little that way to keep the shiniest website afloat, right? Who's with me?
wo men ren ran zai fei xing.
Stewiej84 reporting in, ready to help!
Zoë: Sir, we don't want to deal with Patience again.
Mal: Why not?
Zoë: She shot you.
Mal: Well, yeah, she did a bit.
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Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
I'll try and get caught up as soon as I can and post an update.
I'll be finalizing the news segment for the next Signal podcast in the next 24 hours and we'd be glad to mention what's going on if you want to send me an update on where things stand.
Be glad to heighten awareness of this...just need more details.
My email address is listed on the Signal's crew page...
http://crew.serenityfirefly.com
Take care,
Kevin
-----
Fan of Science Fiction?
If so, then you might enjoy listening to these award winning podcasts...
Tuning Into Scifi TV
http://www.tuningintoscifitv.com
The Signal (Firefly)
http://www.serenityfirefly.com
The ScapeCast (Farscape)
http://www.scapecast.org
Dragon*Pod (Dragon*Con)
http://www.dragon-pod.com
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SAMEERTIA
If Methos needed a gun, and Jayne had Vera, where would that leave the Love Slave?
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Monday, June 29, 2009 - 23:17 |
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Okay... read up. Did a little research.
Haken, add me to the number of people in California who will gladly help set up a mainland entity to keep the Amazon money coming in.
There have been a number of great ideas posted here, and as a certain Bard once sang, Browncoats carry greenbacks. And you know we'll do whatever we have to in order to keep FireflyFans.Net up and running.
(I also think a note to the Governor of HI about this from all of us wouldn't go amiss...) Not pissed off notes! Anger will get us no where... but reasonable, well-written notes mentioning the previous Supreme Court ruling, and whatnot. That kind of thing may not go amiss.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - 07:48 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by SameErtia:
Okay... read up. Did a little research.
Haken, add me to the number of people in California who will gladly help set up a mainland entity to keep the Amazon money coming in.
Shiny offered to do the same. Not quite sure how I can go about doing that without getting into tax trouble and also affecting those who help me with the same tax issues.
I've been paying an income tax on all my earnings since I signed up with Amazon when the site first started.
I basically get a 1099 from Amazon and I pay taxes to both the State and the Federal government on all earnings. The cost of hosting and any other expenditures I have for my sites are also itemized when I file my return.
The Feds and the State both get their share and everything is fine. So, really, this whole sales tax thing just caught me off guard. It feels almost like the State changed the rules all of a sudden and I can't come out ahead even if I follow the rules.
As far as I know at this point, the State and Amazon are both playing a game of chicken. I'm pretty sure the State isn't going to budge. It has bigger problems to deal with than Amazon (like the across the board furloughing of all State employees effective July 1st). Lawsuits are flying around all over the place.
If you want to read about how screwed up we are, we're pretty close to California.
http://tinyurl.com/mg8de5
Regardless, it seems like July 1 is the day that I'm supposed to be cut off. We'll see if Amazon really goes through with it. Will keep you all posted.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - 07:58 |
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Looks like Rhode Island just got hit too.
Quote:
Amazon Drops More Affiliates to Avoid Tax
By GEOFFREY A. FOWLER
Amazon.com Inc. ended its business relationships with marketing affiliates in Rhode Island so the online retailer could avoid collecting sales tax in the state.
Rhode Island’s state legislature recently passed a bill that would force companies to collect sales taxes if they have online-marketing affiliates—businesses that get a sales commission by featuring links to outside e-commerce sites on their own Web sites—in the state.
The Rhode Island termination follows a similar move by Amazon last Friday to end its relationships with affiliates in North Carolina as the state approached passing a similar law. Cash-strapped states across the country have looked at similar legislation to boost revenue. Such a law went into effect in New York last year.
Amazon, based in Seattle, sent an email to its Rhode Island affiliates on Monday saying that it was closing their accounts immediately. “This is a direct result of the unconstitutional tax collection scheme passed by the Rhode Island General Assembly with a veto-proof majority,” said the message.
Amazon spokeswoman Patty Smith said the company took the action now because the Rhode Island bill had passed with veto-proof majorities. “The bill would take effect immediately upon enactment—either the governor’s signature or an override of his veto,” she said.
Amy Kempe, press secretary for Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri said that the governor was still deciding whether or not to sign the budget bill passed by the legislature, and would do so by Wednesday. The state faces a $590 million deficit for the fiscal year starting in July.
Rebecca Madigan, founder of the affiliate trade group Performance Marketing Alliance, estimates there are some 2,000 online affiliates in Rhode Island, who pay about $3 million in state income tax. “We’re seeing small businesses being hit. They are the collateral damage through all of this legislation, which inaccurately classifies affiliate marketers as sales agents” rather than advertising channels, she said.
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RIVERDANCER
 Doing it backwards. Walking up the downslide.
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - 08:05 |
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Eep!
Well, we can object the law, and maybe it'll make a difference. That would be the best option, of course.
We could hunt around for, um, other major sites that will pay for advertising without any trouble? Any ideas?
Er... Haken could transfer the site somehow? Or move? Probably not that. Though I bet a drive for relocation funds would be pretty successful. A drive for 'keep the site afloat' funds will too, I'm sure, but that one would be more ongoing. I'll do what I can either way, along with my daily clicking of any paying ads.
...Fire bad, tree pretty?
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - 08:54 |
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We have a chance. From the Performance Marketing Alliance.
Quote:
Update! Governor Lingle has until 7/15 to sign HB 1405. She is announcing on June 30th if she will veto the legislation or not.
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BRIGLAD
My other car is a Firefly...
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 - 16:11 |
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Sent $10 the other day via paypal. Being only employed part time, it's all I could spare at the moment.
B
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Quote:
Originally posted by fillygirl:
GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! being sent in triplicat!
Everybody knows, we could get around it, taxing the internet just isn't gonna fly. As soon as they do, people will stop buying.
Do not bother dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!
...it's worse than you know...Operative
...it usually is.....Mal
Clearly you do not understand the thinking of King Geor.....err, I mean Democrats. You exist to be taxed.
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Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
Quote:
Originally posted by fillygirl:
GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! being sent in triplicat!
Everybody knows, we could get around it, taxing the internet just isn't gonna fly. As soon as they do, people will stop buying.
Do not bother dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!
...it's worse than you know...Operative
...it usually is.....Mal
Clearly you do not understand the thinking of King Geor.....err, I mean Democrats. You exist to be taxed.
And yet, it's a Republican governor that's in office that's doing all of this....go figure *shrug*
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 04:42 |
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There is a glimmer of hope. The bill is on the veto list.
Quote:
HB1405 HD2 SD2 CDI RELATING TO THE GENERAL EXCISE TAX.
Veto Explanation: Places Hawaii companies, particularly those involved in on-line website development that make customer referrals to out-of-state businesses, at a competitive disadvantage to mainland and international firms by attempting to tax the activities of these out-of-state businesses. Furthermore, the bill is legally defective in that it violates Article III, Section 14 of the Hawaii State Constitution regarding the subject matter each bill can include within its scope.
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TRAINBANDIT
"He takes so much looking after."
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 05:45 |
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Quote:
There is a glimmer of hope. The bill is on the veto list.
When do we know if it was vetoed?
Also, I have another idea, although it may be considered shady-You could charge for a "premium" subscription to this site, like Salon Premium. That doesn't mean that the non-subscribers would not get to participate in all the good stuff - and that is why it may be shady - it just means that those who can pay the, whatever, 15.95 a month or so could, and those that can't, wouldn't, and yet we all get to navigate any damn where we want. Can that be done with impunity? Or, maybe the subscription could be nominal, a small charge like five bucks a month or even a sliding scale, and you could solicit donations as well, which I for one would gladly pay both of.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 06:50 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by TrainBandit:
Also, I have another idea, although it may be considered shady-You could charge for a "premium" subscription to this site, like Salon Premium.
I would probably never make the site exclude anyone that way. If anything, I would probably would like to raise enough funds to pay contributing members a small amount to write feature articles for the site. Nothing that will make anyone rich, of course, but at least it'll allow them to buy a lunch or two for their efforts.
Members will donate money and in turn I would use that money to pay for content so that there's something for the members to read. If they're happy with it, I get more donations and the cycle starts all over again. Hopefully it'll all be self sustaining.
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Quote:
Originally posted by Dancingneko:
Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
Quote:
Originally posted by fillygirl:
GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! being sent in triplicat!
Everybody knows, we could get around it, taxing the internet just isn't gonna fly. As soon as they do, people will stop buying.
Do not bother dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!
...it's worse than you know...Operative
...it usually is.....Mal
Clearly you do not understand the thinking of King Geor.....err, I mean Democrats. You exist to be taxed.
And yet, it's a Republican governor that's in office that's doing all of this....go figure *shrug*
Are you, like, dumb? or Democrat?
Redundancy alert.
The 2 Legislative Houses of Hawaii, both massively Democrap majority, are the clowns passing this legislation. The sole Republican with power to correct the Democrap error can still save the day, despite the most atrocious efforts of the taxaholic liberals. The Republican who can save the day had nothing to do with instigating this lousy legislation. What part of this equation are you clueless about?
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BRIGLAD
My other car is a Firefly...
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 12:07 |
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Considering how many Mb of Fanfic I have on here combined with the necessary bandwidth for people to read it. I'll be willing to throw a little cash now and again to help out.
Brian
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RIVERDANCER
Doing it backwards. Walking up the downslide.
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 19:14 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
Clearly you do not understand the thinking of King Geor.....err, I mean Democrats. You exist to be taxed.
Could you not make everything about your ridiculous soapboxing crusade?? This is an issue for all of us and for Haken and for all the Browncoats out there who haven't found the place yet and for all the Browncoats who don't yet know they are Browncoats. Much like the cancellation of the show itself, THIS is not about YOU.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 19:23 |
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The Amazon store on this site has been closed until further notice.
Hopefully I'll be able to re-open the store once the tax bill is vetoed by our Governor.
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TRAINBANDIT
"He takes so much looking after."
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 20:38 |
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Quote:
I would probably never make the site exclude anyone that way. If anything, I would probably would like to raise enough funds to pay contributing members a small amount to write feature articles for the site. Nothing that will make anyone rich, of course, but at least it'll allow them to buy a lunch or two for their efforts.
Members will donate money and in turn I would use that money to pay for content so that there's something for the members to read. If they're happy with it, I get more donations and the cycle starts all over again. Hopefully it'll all be self sustaining.
I LOVE that idea! I would do it; I write. Do you have any ideas for articles you would want yet? Keep us posted.
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Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
Quote:
Originally posted by Dancingneko:
Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
Quote:
Originally posted by fillygirl:
GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! GOOD MOJO! being sent in triplicat!
[Edited portions, 'cause I don't want to flood the thread....]
Clearly you do not understand the thinking of King Geor.....err, I mean Democrats. You exist to be taxed.
And yet, it's a Republican governor that's in office that's doing all of this....go figure *shrug*
Are you, like, dumb? or Democrat?
Redundancy alert.
The 2 Legislative Houses of Hawaii, both massively Democrap majority, are the clowns passing this legislation. The sole Republican with power to correct the Democrap error can still save the day, despite the most atrocious efforts of the taxaholic liberals. The Republican who can save the day had nothing to do with instigating this lousy legislation. What part of this equation are you clueless about?
*shrug* I say I'm looking at the picture from a different point of view...possibly even the bigger picture. This is just one of several solutions that are out there...and this can be vetoed by the govenor. There are others where it's the govenor's solution and the only current recourse is to go to court. Party affiliations mean little to me, the decisions that our elected leaders make mean far more.
Losing FFF.net would suck, yes. Cutting the pay of many of the people who work in Hawaii by ~14% sucks more...while I care about the people on FFF.net, I make no apologies for choosing the people who live in the state over FFF.net.
Also, I made no personal attack on anyone, I simply pointed out a party affiliation. Please be so kind as to show me the same respect.
...
I apologize for the tangent, just wanted to be clear on where I stand...and I'll get off my soapbox. 
[ Edited to add ] Being able to have a dedicated staff on hand to write up articles (and get paid cashy-money too) would be nice Haken... *wonders if there are other ways of generating funds on the internet besides the Amazon-type route*
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KWICKO
Officially the Angriest Man on the Internet™.
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Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - 23:21 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by Haken:
Quote:
Originally posted by TrainBandit:
Also, I have another idea, although it may be considered shady-You could charge for a "premium" subscription to this site, like Salon Premium.
I would probably never make the site exclude anyone that way. If anything, I would probably would like to raise enough funds to pay contributing members a small amount to write feature articles for the site. Nothing that will make anyone rich, of course, but at least it'll allow them to buy a lunch or two for their efforts.
Members will donate money and in turn I would use that money to pay for content so that there's something for the members to read. If they're happy with it, I get more donations and the cycle starts all over again. Hopefully it'll all be self sustaining.
Well, while not charging for the site or for access, what about charging for "features" - extra content that your "donations" can buy, like the ability to set someone's posts or avatar on fire, for say, $5 a month? You know, your money buys you extra "points" or some such, and you can use them for vengeance, props, or what have you. You can put flames over someone's avatar (a little animated GIF or some such), or send 'em some love with hearts around their post for a week, or something along those lines. It makes it more personal, more interactive, it's NOT excluding anyone, but if you want to participate, you pay a little bit.
Just an idea. It might make for some, uh, rather "heated" debates, and while I might enjoy lighting a few posters on fire (and I'll mention no names, because I'm an equal-opportunity offender), I have no doubt that I'd be in flames an awful lot of the time!
Mike
Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
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KWICKO
Officially the Angriest Man on the Internet™.
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 00:22 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Quote:
Originally posted by Kwicko:
Well, while not charging for the site or for access, what about charging for "features" -
Yeah, charge for access to RWED... call it a "fight club" tax...
The laughing Chrisisall
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!
I mean, yeah, CHARGE for it - but don't call it anything! Remember the first rule of fight club?
But yeah, you might be onto something. Heck, I'd likely pay. I find it a bit cathartic, and a lot less than therapy.
Mike
Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 00:24 |
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Oops...spoke too soon. The bill actually goes back to the legislature where they will debate whether or not to overturn the veto.
More waiting....
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PEULSAR5
We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 01:08 |
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Holding the line.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 02:09 |
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Update: House of Representatives will likely not override the veto because of a technical flaw with the bill.
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PEULSAR5
We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 02:59 |
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YEESSS!!!
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STEAMER
 And River, oh, I love Rive-e-eeerrrr...
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 05:08 |
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*PHEW!!* I haven't said anything 'coz I don't want to jinx you, but this is definitely a step in the shiny direction. If you've screwed around with one bureaucracy, you've screwed around with them all. I know we ain't out of the woods yet, but (wait for it....)
....the woods are the only place we can see a clear path. 
Come what may, let me join the chorus of 'We Got Your Back, Hakes.'
You know we lack fakes,
We got your back, Hakes,
Better, worse, we're flyin' still
Till the tax breaks....
Kaylee's batt'ries
Have gone flat
For her - oh, GOD!
We can't KNOW that!
FIREFLY
Captain of the New England Browncoats
http://www.myspace.com/nebrowncoats
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Yay for the Lingle veto.
However, perhaps this may still be an opportunity to develop some more income or other features, instead of waiting until the last minute to think of things, test them out, refine them.
Thinking about the article idea, I conjure several of the posts I have made could have been done in an article format instead. I have not done fanfic. I would volunteer to convert some of my post contributions to articles, and leave them pro bono. Let us know how this would be done, and I'll see if it is compatible with the computers I'm using. I can use the message board here, but not see most pics, not use the chat thingy, and other applications.
These first articles would provide seed for the new section, to test, evaluate, refine the system.
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PEULSAR5
We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 10:01 |
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I agree. Anything that can help our home be less dependent on the government can only be a good thing.
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 - 18:52 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by jewelstaitefan:
However, perhaps this may still be an opportunity to develop some more income or other features, instead of waiting until the last minute to think of things, test them out, refine them.
I do have the feature section on the site. All feature articles can probably go there. A good place to start too is if someone is willing to report back about their adventures at Comic Con.
I'm willing to improve the site if there's an interest.
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Sounds like things are lookin up? Only been here bout a month or so but I can't imagine the webs without this fine flan family, I love this place. Say the word and you got help any way I can provide it.
-Mal, your dead arm buddy's on the bridge!
-He ain't dead.
-Oh.
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Lets another fan from other state / country join Amazon AP. So easy solution.
-------------------------------------------------
TV & Movie Community: http://www.moviespeople.com
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MANGOLO
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Monday, August 03, 2009 - 05:18 |
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The whole Hawaii state government is going wacko. First they cut the high tech tax incentive which cost the state $700 million, but brought in $1.4 billion of investment including LOST, this online tax thing, and last week they said they were going to cut the film commission off!
Paraphrasing:
(People of Hawaii): "Everything looks good from here...Yes. Yes, this is a fertile land, and we will thrive. We will call it... 'This Land'."
(Hawaii State Government) "I think we should call it...your grave!"
(People of Hawaii) "Ah, curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!"
(Hawaii State Government) "Ha ha HA! Mine is an evil laugh...now die!"
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CONNOR
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Wednesday, August 05, 2009 - 00:37 |
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I'm willing to chip in with donations, even though I'm a new member to the site. Who's your web host anyway? What exactly are their rates? I'd be content to put $10-20 in every month. The GBP-USD exchange rate is still (kinda) in my favour.
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CONNOR
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Wednesday, August 05, 2009 - 00:41 |
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I'm willing to chip in with donations, even though I'm a new member to the site. Who's your web host anyway? What exactly are their rates? I'd be content to put $10-20 in every month. The GBP-USD exchange rate is still (kinda) in my favour.
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CANADIAN
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009 - 20:27 |
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Hey everyone,
Sorry for my ignorance, but Im not quite understanding the issue of costs associated with hosting. Im a web engineer myself, I have commercial grade servers available if all you need to do is throw up a few .asps and a sql db. Perhaps Ill just touch base with Haken thru facebook.
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RALLEM
It’s good to have cargo. Makes us a target for every other scavenger out there of course, but sometimes that’s fun too.
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Wednesday, September 23, 2009 - 21:13 |
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I hope everything works out for the best with this site.
http://www.swyzzlestyx.com/index.html
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I went looking at info about this matter on the web as Haken never said directly that the mess was over [or is it. I can't be sure] or maybe I missed it in all these posts ....
over at
http://www.techhui.com/profiles/blogs/urgent-help-stop-hb1405-the
someone on this blog posted a comment on July 23, 2009 that
Quote:
Hawaii Amazon Associates have been invited to re-enroll. Got this last night:
Dear Amazon Associate:
Earlier this month, Governor Linda Lingle vetoed the unconstitutional tax collection scheme passed by the Hawaii legislature in HB 1405. Because the effective date of that bill preceded both her veto and the legislature's veto override session, we had little choice but to end our advertising relationships with all Hawaii-based participants in the Amazon Associates Program. Now that the override session is over, and the legislature did not override Governor Lingle's veto of HB 1405, we would like to invite all Hawaii Associates whose accounts were closed due to the pending legislation to re-enroll in the Associates Program.
To do so, please click here. When asked to sign in, please use the same account username and password that were previously associated with your Associates account. To make your return to the Program as seamless as possible, when you re-enroll, your account information (login, store-ID, etc.) will be the same as it was prior to termination. For further information about re-enrollment, please click here for FAQs.
We appreciate your patience during this time and hope that you will re-enroll in the Associates Program. We look forward to working with you and other Hawaii-based Associates again. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns.
Best Regards,
The Amazon Associates Tea,
********************************
'You leave Earth and anything you forget to bring with you will kill you. Anything you do bring with you which doesn't work properly will kill you. When in doubt, just assume *everything* will kill you.' Nathan Spring, Star Cops
**************
my occasionally updated blog: http://www.livejournal.com/users/pumaman_redux/
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HollisGreen proclaims 'so... we are back, yes?'
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HAKEN
Likes to mess with stuffs.
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Wednesday, December 09, 2009 - 20:10 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by HollisGreen:
HollisGreen proclaims 'so... we are back, yes?'
Yes, the store is back. Though, orders this holiday season isn't what it used to be. I suspect that everyone (myself included) is just being more conservative with their spending, which is understandable given the current state of the job market, business environment, and economy.
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To love someone is to see a miracle invisible to others. 
"You hold. Hold til I get back."- Mal
