I certainly managed to avoid hearing about it until this story on slashdot.

Sounds like Larry Nivens Cloak of Anarchy.

If the choice is between dying and not dying, then yes, not dying is better.
But if the choice is between loosing my freedom and maybe dying, then having my freedom is far more important to me.

Maybe it's time for phone companies to allow white lists for who can call a number.

Are you saying they set up these plans without consulting the actual people they are making plans about?
What happens if you move, or change jobs?
Do they purposefully make it hard for people to follow their rules?

How often do you have to watch sports in order to not become a fat ass in the basement?

So?
Why should anyone have almost perpetual* control over something he thought up one day?
14 years is more than enough to make money off the movie, and after that there is nothing stopping you from making more movies about it.
Get a trademark for the "Star Wars" name if you don't want others using it. Also, Disney doesn't get to "take" anything.
Sure they could make a remake or whatever after 14 years, but then again, so could the original creator.

* I know that 70 years after death isn't perpetual, but it might as well be since everyone who was alive when that IP was released will be dead when it comes out of copyright.

Birds contain batteries now?

The point of overtime pay isn't to get payed more.
It's to encourage your employer to hire more people rather than overwork you.
The fact that you misunderstood this and used overtime to get more pay doesn't mean that overtime is bad.
Without overtime your employer will just make you work more without paying you more.
And I'm sure if you don't want overtime pay you can negotiate with your employe about it.

This whole expectation that people put in 60 hours without compensation is the problem in the first place.
So is the "you haven't managed to negotiate a better deal? sucks to be you" attitude.

> a dozen or so extra unpaid hours a week
That's more than 2 hours extra per day (assuming standard 5 day work week).
That's pretty bad.

Yes, it is to be expected that you be able to pay people for the work they do.
If you can't finish your project without overtime that is a management failure.
You either pay for the extra work, or you hire more people.

Without knowing what he means by "digital media company" and what changes exactly were taking place it's impossible to know.
Maybe the staff overreacted to some BS corporate email?
Maybe the publication was being turned into something with typical clickbait articles, because it makes more profits?

I think you should be able to write a review for a shitty game in 17 hours.
All the other companies will be tied to the 17 hour embargo. As a company that isn't allowed a preview copy you can just buy one on release, play it for an hour, and then publish a story about how shit their game is. It seems like a better deal than getting the preview game.

I thought the problem with motion sickness was the discrepancy between your eyes telling you you're moving, and your body telling you you're not?
So wouldn't this be better for them?