NET NEUTRALITY and other stuff

One of my passions is the joy in contemplating the freedoms that we all have in this amazing nation. One of the newest of these freedoms is access to the internet. At what other time in all of recorded history has connecting with others, access of information, ability to spread our personal beliefs, dreams and hopes with others been so effortless and so fast. Of course, there are negatives that arise with all freedoms; however, I choose to be free to make the decision whether to use the internet for good.

I received an email today regarding the Net Neutrality Day of Action. It was a request for bloggers to publicize July 12 as a day of protest and action against any efforts to restrict free access to the internet--below is the text of the email.

On July 12, 2017, websites, Internet users, and online communities will come together to sound the alarm about the FCC’s attack on net neutrality. Learn how you can join the protest and spread the word at https://www.battleforthenet.com/july12/.

Right now, new FCC Chairman and former Verizon lawyer Ajit Pai has a plan to destroy net neutrality and give big cable companies immense control over what we see and do online. If they get their way, the FCC will give companies like Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T control over what we can see and do on the Internet, with the power to slow down or block websites and charge apps and sites extra fees to reach an audience.

If we lose net neutrality, we could soon face an Internet where some of your favorite websites are forced into a slow lane online, while deep-pocketed companies who can afford expensive new “prioritization” fees have special fast lane access to Internet users – tilting the playing field in their favor.

But on July 12th, the Internet will come together to stop them. Websites, Internet users, and online communities will stand tall, and sound the alarm about the FCC’s attack on net neutrality.

The Battle for the Net campaign will provide tools for everyone to make it super easy for your friends, family, followers to take action. From the SOPA blackout to the Internet Slowdown, we've shown time and time again that when the Internet comes together, we can stop censorship and corruption. Now, we have to do it again!

Learn more and join the action here: https://www.battleforthenet.com/july12

I hope that all of us who care about our freedoms (which we sometimes take for granted) will participate in this important movement. We can no longer be quiet.

Thank you for letting me blog about what is truly important and about what is relatively trivial as I get back to blogging about my life as an antiques dealer...

THIS WEEK'S HUNT

This was the first item I saw when I went to preview My Auction on Wednesday........gorgeous late Louis XVI (c.1790-1800) walnut chest of drawers in great condition with its beautiful original grey marble top. It was coming up at the end of the auction; so I knew it would be a long day :(, or maybe a :)...you just never know what the outcome will be.

But I also found this.........

I know it's hard to tell from these photos, but there were a pair of these gorgeous cast iron (or so I thought) 19th c. bistro table bases in a Louis XV style and just look as those dolphin-shaped feet!! (I'm a sucker for just about anything with dolphin feet). I was pretty sure that these guys and the Louis XVI chest were coming home with me the next day......

As usually happens when I really want something, it took forever for the Iron bistro tables to come to the block--it seemed as if everything was getting pushed in front of them. But, finally, up they came. And the auctioneer plus the floor manager (Miguel) insisted on singing their praises (so much for their being sleepers and going for very little). The bidding started at $50 and I waited til they were at $150 to bid and up and up they went..........and I finally got them for just about the max that I was willing to spend, as I still need to have new marble or granite tops cut for them plus inventing a way to secure the slabs to the bases. Well, when I picked up the bases today, I took a really good look at them--paying close attention to their patination and the patination is green. If the tables were iron, they would be a bit rusty in color--not green. The only thing that I know of that is cast metal and turns green is BRONZE. Miguel checked the tables with a magnet (that's easiest way to see if something is bronze) and they are not iron!! They are definitely bronze--boosting their desirability way up there. As always, I am so grateful.

I bought a couple of other things will waiting (and waiting usually gets me into trouble) for the chest of drawers, including this adorable little (about 18"w x 9"d x 12"h) camphor wood trunk to add to my collection of Chinese trunks that, by the way, are not selling. I know: not the smartest way to do business, but I couldn't help myself........

And then this table came to the block. I hadn't noticed it during preview or during the auction, but Dear Lord, it has elephant-head legs.........what was I to do??

This gorgeous Japanese lacquer table is in the Aesthetic Movement (c.1890) style, but most probably dating to the 1950s or 1960s. And no one was bidding on it. Yep, it came home with me for a ridiculous amount of money. I'll post more photos when I get it into shop. I did find a very similar table on 1stdibs (the lacquer top is not nearly as nice on that table) for $6500. My price point is going to be about a 1/3 of that.

And finally, after I asked the guys to bring it up, the Louis XVI Chest came to the block. The bidding starts at $250........and up and up and up it goes. I didn't even raise my hand as the bid zooooomed past my max. It ended up at $1500--way more than what I wanted to pay. You know, we are supposed to be making some profit in this crazy business.

I won't go into the health care debacle.......enough has been and will be said in the coming weeks. But I am so disappointed that those elected to serve The People are only serving the wealthy. We deserve much better governance.

Need to get up early tomorrow. Thankfully it has cooled down a bit, at least for a few days.

Be well and PLEASE STAY INVOLVED. "WE can't keep quiet, any more."

Mary & Jones & Cole