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The NYPD has a similar program of bounties that is reasonably well known. Given that various Crime Stoppers programs have been going on since 1975, I expect they're reasonably effective.

IIRC the last taxi medallion that was openly sold in NYC went for north of $500K. Hardly a miniscule fee.

If there were only 10,000 programmer medallions available in the USA, would you stop coding?

Try ~$1m.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/about/average_medallion_price.shtml

Granted, thats for a yellow medallion.
For an "Outer Borough Taxi" permit (all of NYC except Manhattan below 110th St on the west side and 96th St on the east side), it costs $1500 for three years (in addition to already being a licensed TLC Operator).

You're a little off in your analogy though, If you want to compare buying a taxi medallion to something in the programming world, then its equivalent to running your own Start Up. In that case financing and business models apply.

Programmers would be equivalent to the drivers that work for the TLC licensed shops (including those that hold medallions). Trust me, if you want to drive, you can, of course you might need to actually get a hack license (which Ironically you don't need to program).

Well, perhaps this link will convince you that some of the people buying that real estate are spouting those lines: http://www.nyc.gov/html/planyc...

Follow the money. Selling taxi medallions is a huge source of revenue and graft.

That is true but the summary refers to Brooklyn and Queens, a.k.a. "outer boroughs" (anything that isn't Manhattan). The outer boroughs now have "Green Taxis" which do not bear medallions, and there are about 15,000 of them so far:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/passenger/shl_passenger.shtml

NYC also has "livery" cabs which can be summoned via phone, in contrast to "taxis" which are hailed on the street. Livery cabs don't bear medallions either.

The concerns about Lyft and Uber probably is more about the proper training and licensing of drivers, liability insurance coverage, adherance to laws (like non-discrimination in picking up passengers, and like fair labor practices). Not medallions.

Cab fares are regulated in NYC. Competition has nothing to do with it. http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/ht...

NYC Taxis have to carry $100k (per person) / $300k (per incident) liability insurance. That's the same for Uber drivers.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/do...

For instance, the local mom and pop store could not sell a 44 ounce soft drink, however the local 7-11 (convenience store) could sell it without any problems.

A local mom and pop store could also sell them just fine.

the ban only applied to businesses under the auspices of the health department*

If the mom and pop 'store' was actually a small local food joint (including, say, an establishment that sells giant sugared-up bubble teas), you're absolutely right. But then, they're already subject to a whole slew of different laws.

So you'd really have to question how 7/11 with their soda dispensers etc. are categorized as merely a convenience or grocery store, when in the element of providing beverages effectively 'to go' they're not all that different from, say, a McDonald's. Not so much a problem with this law, as it is with whatever law governs business categorization and how that affects what other laws are applicable.
( Note that 7/11 could still sell their half gallon bottled products, regardless. )

* From a BBC article. You can read the full definition in the actual health code (as long as it isn't changed after the ruling):
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/do...
Page 38.

====================
New York City Health Code
ARTICLE 81

FOOD PREPARATION AND FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS

[...]

81.53 Maximum Beverage Size

• (a) Definition of terms used in this section.
  • (1) Sugary drink means a carbonated or non-carbonated beverage that:
    • (A) is non-alcoholic;
    • (B) is sweetened by the manufacturer or establishment with sugar or another caloric sweetener;
    • (C) has greater than 25 calories per 8 fluid ounces of beverage; and
    • (D) does not contain more than 50 percent of milk or milk substitute by volume as an ingredient.
      The volume of milk or milk substitute in a beverage will be presumed to be less than or equal to 50 percent unless proven otherwise by the food service establishment serving it.
  • (2) Milk substitute means any liquid that is soy-based and is intended by its manufacturer to be a substitute for milk.
  • (3) Self-service cup means a cup or container provided by a food service establishment that is filled with a beverage by the customer.
• (b) Sugary drinks. A food service establishment may not sell, offer, or provide a sugary drink in a cup or container that is able to contain more than 16 fluid ounces.
• (c) Self-service cups. A food service establishment may not sell, offer, or provide to any customer a self-service cup or container that is able to contain more than 16 fluid ounces.
• (d) Violations of this section. Notwithstanding the fines, penalties, and forfeitures outlined in Article 3 of this Code, a food service establishment determined to have violated this section will be subject to a fine of no more than two hundred dollars for each violation and no more than one violation of this section may be cited at each inspection of a food service establishment.

Perhaps they should do their jobs which would result in finding things like mice and cockroaches,

Nothing like a rant based on nonsense to start the day. You obviously have never looked at the NYC Health Inspections web site where they list the reasons for the restaurant grade, including if they find mice droppings (or mice themselves). Here, let me show you the way.

In fact, Per Se, a well known restaurant, recently received a 'C' grade because of their violations.

But go ahead and rant, it's your right. The nice thing about freedom of speech is it reveals to the world the true nature of an individual.

If you can get the name of the street in the hands of the tight person in government, you really don't need GPS-derived long & lat...

In NYC they have 311 - you can dial 311 on any phone in the city and be connected to a city worker that takes such reports (potholes, open hydrants, fallen tree, etc.) and passes it on to the proper department... Had it for years, does your average affluent suburb have a similar service?

It most certainly does, but the Croton system has been out of use for several years (source). When they get around to using it again, it only accounts for ~10% of the water - and in any case they're treating it mostly for color (turbidity) and not safety (the state's DOH doesn't distinguish, but the federal does). The city's water is untreated in the sense that it doesn't really pass through a treatment plant - they do put chemicals in it (a very small amount of chlorine, not enough to taste, and some fluoride) and it it is definitely unfiltered

The New York City web site says that's incorrect. According to the city government, they grant franchises to specific companies to serve specific parts of the city. Here's the map of authorized service areas:

  http://www.nyc.gov/html/doitt/...

The actual New York state law: http://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/foil2.html#s87

The form to submit with its requirements for the NYPD: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/legal_matters/dclm_doc_production_foil.shtml

GOOD designers are still THRIVING despite having no IP laws protecting them...

There are IP-laws protecting designers. NYPD, for for just one example, periodically arrests peddlers of the fakes — and confiscates their counterfeit goods — they have a special unit for the purpose.

when they can afford the Prada bag...they tend to buy it.

Citation needed. (Note: anecdotal evidence from your girlfriend would not count.)

this will HELP people who design things by making them better and faster at it

Today some people prefer the real thing, because the manufacturing quality is still better. When/if the hypothetical 3D-printing is used by both the fake and the real — producing indistinguishable pieces from the same designs — the clothing designer will stop being a profession and become a hobby.

If not, then they go out of business...which is sort what business is about no?

That's just what I said — if some other way to reward designers is not found, they'll stop designing... Whether that's good or bad — decide for yourself.

The number of taxis in NYC is fixed, and the price of a "medallion" to operate one hangs around $1M (source). That's not an open-but-regulated business. That's a closed, protected one.

Under current law, if you saw someone raping a 9 year old and took a photo to send, using the internet, to the police as evidence, you would get longer in prison that the rapist.

Show me that me that you have something - anything - to back this up.

Not that the e-mailing such a photograph rather than reporting the crime through safer, more secure and more ordinary means and letting the police retrieve and properly document your evidence is an idea so brain dead only a geek could have thought of it.

I have information about a crime I believe has occurred or I know the whereabouts of someone wanted for a crime. What should I do?

For any crime in progress, call 911. Provide an exact location when possible, and then details of the crime including, if possible, a description of suspects and victims involved. If you have information about a violent felony crime or know the whereabouts of someone wanted for a crime, you are encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS, (Se habla espanol: 1-888-57-PISTA). Callers remain anonymous. If your information leads to the arrest and indictment of a perpetrator for a violent felony crime, you are eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000.

NYC.gov --- Crime and Prevention

So, they were they to sightsee one of the largest American "chemical processing structures" . . . after midnight . . because it improves the view? You can see easier in the dark? And they had to trespass to do it.

A reservoir is in essence nothing more than a big tank of water. By your criteria, a water glass is a "man made chemical(water) processing structure." No "processing" takes place in a reservoir, it just hold massive quantities of water, that's it. Actual water treatment that involves chemicals takes place in actual water treatment plants.

On the other hand, a reservoir is a place where one might introduce poisons that could be selected with a knowledge of . . . wait for it . . . chemical engineering to make it through treatment unaffected and into the "man made chemical(water) processing structure" (AKA drinking glass) on your table that you sip from time to time.

Well, whatever was going on, I'm sure someone will get it figured out eventually. It obviously won't be you though. Maybe it was innocent, maybe not.

Not every terrorist has attacking as their mission. NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE & CITIGROUP HEADQUARTERS
Mirror: FBI hunting 12-strong sleeper cell linked to Boston Marathon bombing Hmmm, Boston? Isn't that close to some recent news item?

One last thing - I find the level of intellectual dishonesty in your post absolutely stunning.

It's easy. You just need to provide character reference letters (you're told before the interview), and list every single non-civil court encounter from traffic to summons to arrest, as well as list every single narcotic you've ever taken. Oh you forgot you got Vicodin at the hospital that one time you broke your hand? Well you've just lied on a government form. Denied. You can find more info here: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/permits/HandGunLicenseApplicationFormsComplete.pdf

Port-a-potty companies and septic companies use vacuum trucks to remove waste from portable toilets or underground storage tanks. They then truck it to a sewage treatment plant where there are unloading bays with a grate on the floor or a hose to hook to an unloading pipe. So in essence, a port-a-potty is a toilet who's plumbing is truck based instead of pipe based. The sludge is treated at the same sewage plants that serve the local population. Nothing is dried or shipped by them.

Its the sewage treatment plant that sometimes dries the solids that separates in the sludge tanks. It is used as fertilizer.

Here is a PDF from the NYC DEP on water treatment: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wwsystem.pdf Amazing system.

"Probably someone thought about it, but decided that other potential hazards (e.g., a leak in the tank causing fuel to be soaked all through several floors of the building) were more important to deal with"

Specious logic, the position of the fuel pumps don't contribute to fuel tank leakages ..

"You can guess what the likelihood of each particular risk is, but that's definitely guesswork;

No need to guess, certain people are paid a lot of money to analyse the risks,

"the whole of New York really wasn't set up with this sort of storm surge in mind"

NYC Hurricane History: 1821,1893,1938,1954,1955,1960,1985,1995,1996,1999,1999,2011 ...

Sep 2007: 4 Million Gallon Diesel Fuel Tank Fire

Earthicans banned it in 2010...
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dep/html/air/dry_cleaners_perchlorate.shtml

Someone else mentioned teaching certificates - check out the alternative NYC programs at http://schools.nyc.gov/TeachNYC/certification/alternatives.htm and http://schools.nyc.gov/TeachNYC/certification/cte.htm (tech at the very bottom of this list).

Someone else mentioned teaching certificates - check out the alternative NYC programs at http://schools.nyc.gov/TeachNYC/certification/alternatives.htm and http://schools.nyc.gov/TeachNYC/certification/cte.htm (tech at the very bottom of this list).

In Singapore taxis are cheaper than in NYC. There are very many of them too.

http://www.taxisingapore.com/taxi-fare/
http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/passenger/taxicab_rate.shtml

So if you've done a lot of shopping, paying SGD10 for cab fare isn't such a big deal. Once you factor in the cost of private vehicle ownership it doesn't look so bad - parking rates in some areas can be very high (higher than cab fare) and spaces can be rather limited.

97% of cyclists killed in New York between 1996 and 2005 were not wearing helmets.

I don't know a single person that doesn't bike because they have to wear a helmet.

Well, you just met him. Or rather, somebody who just doesn't wear a helmet. I exercise aggressively, every other day or so, and cycling is my most common form in summer months.

So we'll just let people get hit by cars until the cars stop being dumb?

Sure. Or maybe progress shouldn't have a price, either? And, of course, the point: Helmets cause increases in head injuries and here's what increased ridership looks like.

There's scant good evidence that bike helmets do any good at all.

No, not police or rich people. He was most likely referring to Blacks and Hispanics from low-average-income neighborhoods, which together account for ~70% of violent crime across most urban areas of US. Don't believe me, look it up.
Don't like this? Neither do I. But don't call people racist just because they know the stats.

Could it be because the NYC TLC wants only their own app to be used for these purposes? The request for proposals for such an official app was release over the summer a few months ago, and the commissioner had a Q&A with interested companies. http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/downloads/pdf/industry_notice_12_07.pdf

The medallions are owned by Regular people and very expensive so there are lots of interests in keeping the system as it is

The medallions are owned by Really Rich people and are extremely expensive so there are lots of interests in keeping the system as it is.
In 2012, the lowest winning bid for a medallion was $1.201 million
The Regular people who drive cabs have to lease from millionaires who can afford the medallion.

The NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission screwed things up in in the early 80s when it allowed cabbies to be treated as independent contractors, which broke the taxi union and changed the balance of power.
Combine that with the few (if any) new medallions issued and you essentially have a cartel of medallion owners that are screwing the drivers and the public.

And another.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/wnv/wnvfaq4.shtml

New Orleans was built below sea level . . . I dont know of any other metropolotian cities built beloew sea level.

True..but then again...it was almost 300 years ago, before GPS and all the nifty tech tools we have now...and it was built where it is due to the important location, near the mouth of the MS river...hence, why the city is so important. It was just a bit disheartening to hear all the people, many from the NE saying "they shouldn't have built there, just leave, not worth saving...etc".

I guess many of the same people neglect the facts that NYC has pretty much the exact same disaster scenario, and are WAY overdue for a hurricane there...NYC can get hit by a medium level hurricane and if in the right place, kiss it goodbye.

Will people say it isn't worth saving, and they shouldn't have been built there too?

On a larger scale...do we say the same about the midwest in the country..when in recent years, flooding has knocked down cities there?

What about the panhandle area...prone to tornadoes annually? What about out west, where they seem to have annual problems with fires and mudslides....?

Seems like most of the country comes around for those areas...yet, NOLA, with its importance for energy and a great deal of commerce (not to mention the cultural influences on the whole US)....gets brushed off more easily.

Sorry...I still have some soft spots for the callous comments on this forum and other places when it hit.

PS. I believe Amsterdam is another city built far below sea level....and they had no problems doing what it took to built defenses against the sea for that little town....

Read through it yourself. Also, these are guidelines, not laws. They would be violations of school policy, not misdemeanors / felonies. http://schools.nyc.gov/NR/rdonlyres/BCF47CED-604B-4FDD-B752-DC2D81504478/0/DOESocialMediaGuidelines20120430.pdf

Right. Better Place is "all hat and no cattle", as they say in Texas. Their original scheme, to deploy swap stations in areas where you can't drive too far, like Hawaii and Israel, made sense. But they didn't actually do it. Instead, they just hyped up new deals.

Even the Tokyo taxicab demo was only 3 cabs running for 6 months before it closed down. That's the ideal situation - a uniform fleet of vehicles which stay in a small area and return daily to a central location. If it didn't work economically there, it's probably a failure.

The NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission has a bigger electric taxi trial than that. They're now trying round 2, with Nissan Leafs. Round 1 tried an electric PT Cruiser. Didn't work. The NYC Taxi and Limo Commissioner growled "It got to spend a lot of time on the back of a flatbed tow truck and not a lot of time as a taxicab". Better Place didn't compete for that market. They probably didn't want to face the NYC "it had better work" attitude.

So who will be the one to keep all that money?
I can hardly believe that the money will be spent for other projects or the citizens of NYC.

It's money they've already spent and it will be returned to the coffers of NYC. The next NYC budget proposal is for more than $68 billion. I'm sure they'll find a way to spend it.

I was referring to the kind of license this webpage talks about: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/permits/gun_licensing_faq.shtml#CanITargetShootOutsideNYC

In NYC you need a permit to buy, own, and carry a gun. Of course other laws may be in force where the incident happened.

Your geography is a little off. New York City is in New York - not South Carolina.

And my crime statistics are sound:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_statistics/cscity.pdf

In 2011, if you exclude crimes that weren't person to person, there were about 40,000 violent crimes. Out of population over 8,200,000 people that is less than half a percent.

Official link: http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/press_relations/credentials.shtml

There have been some disputes in the past on how this is adjudicated (esp. to online writers): http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/12/nypd-is-sued-over-denial-of-press-credentials/

It sounds like it's time to change tactics. I have a suggestion: use democracy for what it was designed to do.

Our country fought a revolution to give us the democratic right to change. If you are able to find an audience, take petitions, publicize your goals and then elect officials, you can change the policy in this country.

While some votes can be bought, I doubt even the infamous 1% can buy out 51% of Americans.

Many brave people died to bring us these rights, and since then, many other brave people have died defending them. It's not a lost cause to use "the system" instead of giving up on it.

If you know of a corrupt public servant or politician, try reporting them. Many cities, states and government agencies have whistleblower lines like this one:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doi/html/home/reconize.shtml

http://www.ustream.tv/TheOther99

Major media helicopters have been forced out of the air by NYPD. Lots of fresh news on twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23occupywallstreet

NYPD Police scanner here:
http://www.radioreference.com/apps/audio/?action=wp&feedId=8905

NYPD switchboard isn't taking any more calls:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/home/contact_information.shtml

I know this is slashdot and facts are irrelevant here, but the NYPD hasn't used mace since 1994: http://www.nyc.gov/html/ccrb/pdf/pepperreport.pdf. There is a difference between mace and pepper spray (most significantly that mace is illegal in most of the civilized world).

Mayor Bloomberg has stated in press conferences those in affected areas should move to higher ground; ie, non-affected areas, staying with friends and/or relatives in the boroughs or outside.

There likely won't be lawlessness, the waters will recede and there will just be a lot of property damage. They are deploying a lot of police units to keep order in the city and crews are coming from out of state and those local to the area being lined up in teams to repair and clear damage and restore power to the affected areas.

I'm still scared-- stockpiling on water and going to bunker down in my basement, as the projected path of the 'cane brings the eye with a near-direct hit over my residence. Just gotta tough it out and hope they can restore power in a reasonable period of time and damage to life and proprety is minimal.

But don't pray for me.

"It's much more profitable to adjust the traffic light timings so that people have to travel 5-10 mph over the speed limit to get the green lights on a long stretch of road (and make the red lights last a long time). Then you have a steady stream of speeders to ticket."

It's actually WORSE then that.

I live in Bellingham, WA where the city is currently about to put to a vote whether or not to allow Red-light/Speeding cameras.

The city has already signed a contract with a company called ATS to run the system, and the voters are pissed. As it turns out, ATS actually spells out in the contract how much the fines should be and how much of a cut they get from each ticket. ATS has, understandably, sued the city to stop the vote. A local judge told them to get bent.

It is not that the cameras invade our privacy so much as the distasteful aspect of this company making profits from each ticket--simply put, it PRIVATIZES the punishments meted out for speeding/running a red light. Such punishments should remain wholly within the jurisdiction of the justice system, not in the hands of some for-profit company. THAT is why voters here are pissed.

That being said, I think Bloomberg is getting kickbacks or simply has "friends" in the business. Want to know who? This might have something to do with it...

"MAYOR BLOOMBERG JOINS MAYORS AND BUSINESS LEADERS TO FORM PARTNERSHIP FOR A NEW AMERICAN ECONOMY

National Partnership Will Push for Immigration Reform to Fix Broken Borders and Keep America Open to the Best, Brightest and Hardest-Working People From Around the World

Mayor Bloomberg Announces Co-Chairs Mark Hurd, Chairman, CEO and President of Hewlett-Packard..."

Mark Hurd was CEO of Hewlett-Packard, the company that owns EDS, the contractors for the red-light system.

Here is the press release I quoted from:
http://home.nyc.gov/html/om/html/2010a/pr287-10.html

There are some other interesting names in that press release, as well.

These scumbags are trying to figure out how to monetize the entire justice system, one sector at a time. "New American Economy", indeed.

I live on the 12th floor of a building in Harlem, which is mostly 6- and 8-story apartment buildings. Many of the buildings in my neighborhood participate in the "Cool Roofs" program run by the city, which gives owners a tax break (or rebate or something) for painting their roof white.

Except they don't use white paint. All of the roofs I can see are painted in a metallic-style silver color. It's really quite striking.

Anyway, the NYC program is here, and is pretty successful if my neighborhood is any indication: http://www.nyc.gov/html/coolroofs/html/home/home.shtml

Sad, but true.

US Energy Group has installed Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) in thousands of NYC buildings, including public schools (tuition: $0). In one school, indeed the entire large building (1000 students + staff) was being heated 5PM-8AM just to keep the gym heated (through its high ceilings, with people exercising) until the BEMS showed it to the Department of Education. Yet practically all of the NYC buildings' owners refuse to consider buying a BEMS unless the payback time is under 3 years, usually under a year. 10-25% ROI is dismissed, even as no other investment can bring even a good chance of that return. While utility inflation guarantees it will be even higher ROI, especially over longer than a few years.

Even among the most notorious moneygrubbers, NYC landlords, it takes a law like NYC LL84 to force everyone to even count up how much they're consuming in energy every year. Energy efficiency consciousness in the US is so primitive that these ubercapitalists must be forced by the public to look at how much they're consuming, let alone how much they can save by doing some of the very many things that pay for themselves promptly.

"A Place of Assembly Certificate of Operation (PA) is required for premises where 75 or more members of the public gather indoors or 200 or more gather outdoors, for religious, recreational, educational, political or social purposes, or to consume food or drink." - http://www.nyc.gov/html/dob/html/applications_and_permits/pa.shtml

re-design our city's streets for rapid busses and greater pedestrian and cycling improvements

Really? And just how do you propose to make thse changes? Are you going to make the sidewalks more narrow, thus giving New Yorkers more ammunition to whine about all the slow-moving tourists who bring billions to their economy each year?

Or perhaps you will knock down some buildings so streets can be widened. Maybe start with the Pan Am Building just north of Grand Central Terminal.

Considering I've been visiting The Big Apple for over half my life and stop by twice a year, the grid pattern of Manhattan is perfectly suited for both buses and bikes with the only thing that needs to be done is make specific lanes for each. Oh wait, that's what Bloomberg is doing as I speak.

list of NYC TLC rules just in case anyone's too lazy to search

Wouldn't it be a better idea for people to walk those short distances, given how fat people are these days?

I don't know if this is sound logic. If I were to believe your reasoning, I would assume that we would see a lower average of obesity in a city like New York City where walking is a large part of transportation but it turns out to be similar to other places:

New York City's adult obesity rate was 20% in 2003, compared to 23% nationwide in 2004. The national average has nearly doubled from 12% in 1993.

I could just as presumptuously argue that people will only walk a certain amount -- no more, no less. And that if you put in these sidewalks it would only increase their range of desired travel that is acceptable to them (usually on a time based limit). So if I'm only will to walk 10 blocks and suddenly these sidewalks put me twenty blocks one way or the other, I've greatly increased my distances. And if you look at the history of the interstate and roads, it is evident than increasing a populace's means of transportation and freedom will increase your economy.

And what caused it to double since 1993? Not a revolution in transportation, I'll assure you that. Maybe a revolution in how we do business over the internet and a number of other factors more important than new transportation technologies.

I don't think the introduction and mass spread of automobiles in the early 1900s caused obesity. I personally think that what we eat and how we are raised to be sedentary are bigger problems than not walking everywhere. There's a number of contributing factors and deciding not to investigate new modes of public transportation for high concentrations of citizens is just not a sound decision.

It might be tempting to blame technology for our laziness but let's face it: we've been pacified and are perfectly content to sit around to get fat--moving sidewalk or no moving sidewalk.

Let's say he's an E-2. According to the 2010 Military Pay Table located here he'd be making 1622.10 a month before the bonuses. His BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) as an E-2 with a dependent is 619.50. Add to that his family separation allowance of $250 (since I assume he was away from his wife). According to the pay table, his hazard pay (assuming he wasn't on an air crew or in a submarine or something like that) is $150. The BAQ allowance would vary based on where he lives assuming his wife lived off base when he deployed. But that would essentially just cover housing costs. So he makes a grand total of approximately 2641.6 a month to defend our country, assuming he's an E-2 with typical years in service for an E-2. That sounds like a lot, but then let's look at the parent's claim that he makes less than a typical garbage man in a large city. Searched at random for a large city's sanitation work site, found this for New York. They start off making 31,200 a year. Assuming they get paid bi-monthly, that's 1300.00 every paycheck, or 2600 a month, right off the bat, and can increase to as much as slightly over 67,000. So right off the bat, a garbage man makes, without accounting for any benefits, just slightly less than an E-2 who is married, in a combat zone, and lives on base. As the increases for the sanitation workers is periodic, and judging the fact that within 5.5 years they are making near or at their cap (a cap that enlisted won't reach for some time even with benefits), I'd say that his claim is valid (and rather sad).

During and after Katrina everyone attacked Bush, often very personal attacks for the Federal and even state responses to that event.

Yet here we are nearly two months after this started and there has been very little vitriolic attacking on the current President.

Why is that I wonder? The Obama administration was in charge of the offices at the Interior that oversaw this and no changes were made. The Justice Department could have been turned on to BP and people could be in jail right now, but nothing was done.

I'll field this one.

Why is the difference between Deepwater and Katrina? Well multiple reasons. First, Katrina was a natural disaster, and Deepwater was a man-made one, no matter how many times BP and anti-government apologists claim it was a "natural disaster" or an "Act of God". While not all the facts are in, it's looking increasingly likely criminal negligence and lack of proper enforcement of regulations due to long time corruption in the Mines and Minerals Service are to blame. The government has always had a role in the preparation and recovery after natural disasters. In fact, there's a whole agency dedicated just to that, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. States and even large cities have similar agencies. Man made disasters? Not so much. The government simply doesn't have the tools or expertise in repairing deepwater drills. It never did. Now we can argue whether or not the government should have the tools and the expertise in-house for future events, but it has never had this. Second, Katrina had warning. Days of warning for Katrina specifically, and years of warning about the possibility. Sadly, the devastation of Katrina pretty much played out exactly as predicted. The Bush Administration simply failed to prepare because he appointed political allies instead of the (albeit recent) tradition of professional emergency managers. Finally, and this is the biggest difference. The economic and human toll of the two disasters are simply incomparable. The death toll for Katrina is literally 100 times greater. The economic impact is equally disproportionate.

You talk about coverups, but the only coverup I'm aware of is BP's not the government's. Keep in mind, BP was repeatedly denying access to the site by outsiders and providing the absurdly low estimates. Not the Coast Guard, nor any other government agency.

I'm sure you could have thought of some form of government control that actually happens.

It does happen everyday. It is just that you are excluded from the rules. And not because you are good (or non-bigoted), but because there are too many of your kind and forcing all of you to comply is politically suicidal...

For a closer-to-home example, consider New York City's laws against landlords discriminating tenants... Discrimination on a large number of parameters is banned. But the owners of two-family houses are exempt... Is it any more acceptable (and less divisive) to be a bigot, if you are a small-scale landlord?

It is not. But such small-scale landlords represent a far larger proportion of voters, and would get really upset, if, suddenly, they are no longer able to reject a tenant on their own whim. But, as long as the illiberal rule, that prevents people from using their property the way they want, applies to somebody else, most people don't care and allow themselves to be swayed by the discrimination poster-boys and -girls...

Hence my point — when considering laws regulating inter-human relationships, imagine yourself in both positions...