As many of you already know, I’ve been writing weekly and monthly columns for national publications for almost seven years now. One of the perks of serving as a countrywide reporter includes access to a coast-to-coast network of sources. I usually stick to my standard beat when sourcing questions. Every once in a while, however, I stray from that path and have a little fun.
Another thing you probably know about me is that I am a life-long booster of the Greater Western New York region. It’s one of the reasons I started a mutual fund called the “Greater Western New York Series.” It was one small way I could help promote the region. Once we started the fund I learned this: There are many more people who are Continue Reading “When Should Greater Western New York Declare its Independence from Albany?”
How to Prevent Real Identity Theft: Claim Your Name
During the heady days of the California Gold Rush of 1849, prospectors would hurry to their preferred site. They hoped to be the first to discover the valuable ore there and then stake their claim, thereby giving them preemptive rights over all other prospectors to that particular spot of land. This practice wasn’t limited to miners. The Homestead Act of 1862 (and the other Homestead Acts that followed) allowed any adult who was the first to settle a piece of property to lay claim to it. You even see elements of this “first come, first serve” philosophy in traditional U.S. Patent Law. Here, the first to claim an invention retains all patent rights on it.
These three examples have one thing in common: a wide open territory. Whether it be undeveloped land for miners and settlers, or the vast unexplored realm of ideas, there’s a bit of terra incognita associated with the idea of being the “first to claim.” The other commonality they all possess is they aren’t new. They come from an era when America was a frontier waiting to be discovered. With the passing of centuries, this “Wild West” spirit has since dissolved into the annals of history.
Yet, there remain new worlds to discover, new territory to explore, new stakes to claim. Remember when the internet exploded in popularity in the 1990s? Prospectors in that era Continue Reading “How to Prevent Real Identity Theft: Claim Your Name”