Slashdot Mirror

I expect Obama to do no less than help us live long and prosper. Though his pacifism probably means we'll all get it in the ass from our alien overlords. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/10/opinion/10dowd.html

and look at this before you puke your words at me. And yeah, BP isn't the only idiots who left a mark.

First, you messed up your link. Corrected.

Second, from the start of the article:

"When an Oregon college student, Mohamed Osman Mohamud, thought of using a car bomb to attack a festive Christmas-tree lighting ceremony in Portland, the F.B.I. provided a van loaded with six 55-gallon drums of "inert material," harmless blasting caps, a detonator cord and a gallon of diesel fuel to make the van smell flammable. An undercover F.B.I. agent even did the driving, with Mr. Mohamud in the passenger seat. To trigger the bomb the student punched a number into a cellphone and got no boom, only a bust."

Emphasis mine. This is not entrapment at all. The attack was his idea. The feds just helped him along to show he was willing to go through with it. It's no different than if somebody asked a bartender about a hitman to kill their spouse, and then the feds supplied them with one.

The Cromitie case is much more dubious, and if it's true he wasn't actively seeking to become a jihadist, I feel it is entrapment. But I also feel that way about cops dropping bills on the subway and arresting people who pick them up and keep them, or cops who leave unlocked vehicles with keys in the ignition in bad neighborhoods.

Yeah, that's how the courts used to decide this, but not anymore.

Ireland: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/03/world/europe/03ireland.html Holland: http://euobserver.com/18/26278 Oddly enough, they never gave the British a vote. I wonder why.

That's what I thought as well. This is what you are looking for: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/science/rock-paper-scissors.html Humans really suck at being random. This Karate game is very similar: http://www.masterbaboon.com/2009/05/my-ai-reads-your-mind-and-kicks-your-ass-part-2/ It blows you mind how well you can be predicted.

The largest antitrust fine to date [nabarro.com]: €992M, on a cartel of lift makers within the EU.

Bullshit. The largest antitrust fine to date: €1.06B, was on Intel, for abusing its dominance in the computer chip market.

You mean like this?

>>>every time USA, France, Germany, anybody, tries to talk to the leadership in Iran they are met with a very disingenuous leadership who will talk round in circles

Source?
Last I heard Iran allowed UN inspection teams to enter the country and look at the labs. ALSO you seem to be unaware that Iran is allowed to develop nuclear capability under the terms of the Nonproliferation Treaty. It's not a crime for them to purify uranium below 29% purity. You appear to hate Iran simply because you were TOLD to hate Iran, without any logical reason for doing so. You're a "useful idiot" of the politicians.

Here's a source from only 4 months ago. Wasn't really that hard to find. Iran has often allowed inspection teams into the country, but not into specific labs, plants, etc. that are suspected of being used to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels. Now that doesn't necessarily mean that they are being used for this, but Iran has definitely not allowed inspectors in to look at them.

The question of whether they should is a bit different.

Also, it's foolish to think that Iran is not pursuing a nuclear weapon. They feel targeted and trapped, much like North Korea. Did you argue that they weren't really doing anything too?

And disagreeing with Iran does not mean that one "hates" Iran, though your crassness more than communicates your dislike for the USA.

It's ridiculous that kids are growing up with chronic back pain as a result of having to schlep around gigantic backpacks full of books. My high school actually banned carrying backpacks between classes, mostly because of overcrowding, which meant that they had to allow extra time between classes to access lockers (and ironically probably also exacerbated traffic in the halls). All this led to decreased instructional time in any given day, more disruption of class due to kids not having enough time to use the restroom between classes, probably more violence in the overcrowded halls, etc. So, for purely logistical reasons, tablets are a huge win.

Between the arguments here, and recently watching Niall Ferguson's PBS special (http://video.pbs.org/program/civilization-west-and-rest-niall-ferguson/) about immigration's relationship to economic growth..
it seems we have a lot of 'rednecks' and trolls on /.

The argument that
    " mexicans don't pay taxes" > "mexicans work for less" > "mexican labor takes jobs away from US citizens"
sounds an awful lot - to me - like
  " I download free music" > " I don't have money to pay for all the music I want" > " stealing music is okay, because I wouldn't buy it anyway"

Most Americans that I find don't want to work as laborers, even at double what the immigrant laborer makes. .. and in my area, "Mexican" is a rarity.. I see many more Dominicans, Guatemalans, and South Americans.

I personally have been trying to 'recruit' carpenters, electricians, plumbers and others to do work around my house, and for my Dad in the back country.. for a cash wage of $200 per day, .. at Dad's it is a guarantee of 2 weeks work ( 2400 cash for 2- 6 day weeks), options for more.. not counting room & board ,either in the (finished) basement of the house, or a hotel 9 miles down the road.

I've had a few takers.. all checked out as US contractors with insurance and proper corporate paperwork.
Most worked one or two days, took down payment for supplies / permits, then gave me one excuse or another why they won't be back for a week, a few days.. or more. The few who did call back after that wanted access to reclaim tools, or wanted to know why I stopped the check for supplies. They had 'bigger' or 'more important ' jobs that had just come up.

I dare you to find 25 semi-skilled US-born Americans who will work for themselves and show up for hard labor work day after day for $200 ( coastal big cities)- knowing they have to report it all "on the books". ( send 4 or 5 my way if you do!)
    The $80/ day immigrant laborer is also suffering from lack of work
        http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/29/nyregion/new-jersey/29colnj.html
        http://articles.cnn.com/2007-10-02/us/sanchez.btsc_1_day-laborers-job-offer-immigrants?_s=PM:US

This country was built on cheap labor - and continues to thrive on it today. (learned from Ferguson)
    I don't want to be at the bottom of the economic ladder.. so somebody else has to be. ( personal prejudice)

Heck yes - the system has lots of flaws, and badly needs cleaning up.
Hating the folks who immigrated here after us (or our ancestors, pardon to the real Native Americans) - is not productive.
If you want someone to hate - look at your elected officials that don't change the laws until they have to.. or until it is an election-time advantage.

"And for people suffering from constant headaches... the most common cause of headaches is dehydration. Drink water, get better"

I'd like to know where you think you got this information; it is incorrect. From the NY Times Health article on the subject, the top causes of headaches are: Tension, migraines, overuse of medication, infections and other health problems. Hydration is only mentioned as a precaution after you've vomited from a migraine.

On a more personal note, I've suffered from headaches for a long time. The most common pieces of advice I'd get were: (a) you're dehydrated, or (b) you're addicted to caffeine, both of which were false and useless. For me, I had to learn that my headaches were from sinus congestion and the only solution was to take a decongestant. There are many different causes for many people (although dehydration is not one of them). Personally, I suffered for years listening to spurious explanations like that.

http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/symptoms/headache/overview.html

The New York Times apologized for its reporting on the events leading up to the war in Iraq.

As far as I know, no other mainstream media have apologized similarly, even though the lengthy apology would apply to many of them if you just changed the articles references appropriately. Indeed, I would say that a lot of news sources have a lot more to apologize for than The New York Times do.

It's not about evidence, it's about conditioning children to accept fairy stories as valid epistemology.

It's all fairy tales, until you catch fairy.

Fossil Record: Prior to 1938 coelacanths were known only from fossils and were thought to have gone extinct approximately 65 million years ago (mya), during the great extinction in which the dinosaurs disappeared. The most recent fossil record dates from about 80 mya but earlier records date back as far as approximately 360 mya. At one time coelacanths were a large group comprising about 90 different valid species that were distributed around the world in both marine and freshwaters. Although Latimeria is a genus distinct from the fossil forms, all coelacanths share numerous features and are easily recognized by their distinctive shape and lobed fins. . . .

The first living coelacanth (seel-a-canth) was discovered in 1938 and bears the scientific name Latimeria chalumnae. The species was described by Professor J.L.B. Smith in 1939 and was named after its discoverer, Miss Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer. Until recent years, living coelacanths were known only from the western Indian Ocean, primarily from the Comoros Islands, but in September 1997 and again in July 1998, coelacanths were captured in northern Sulawesi, Indonesia, nearly 6,000 miles to the east of the Comoros. The Indonesian discovery was made by Mark V. Erdmann, then a doctoral student studying coral reef ecology in Indonesia. Although the Indonesian specimens superficially resemble those in the western Indian Ocean, analyses of DNA from tissue samples removed from one of the Indonesian specimens have revealed significant genetic differentiation from the Indian Ocean population. The authors of two studies have suggested that the two populations have been separated for at least several millions of years. The Indonesian form was described as a new species, Latimeria menadoensis, in April 1999, by L. Pouyard and several Indonesian colleagues. All Latimeria are considered to be endangered and are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna - - The Coelacanth: More Living than Fossil

More: The Fish Out of Time, Coelacanth

It is also well established that scientists aren't omniscient, and can disregard direct observations that don't fit with their personal belief or theories.

Enormous waves that sweep the ocean are traditionally called rogue waves, implying that they have a kind of freakish rarity. Over the decades, skeptical oceanographers have doubted their existence and tended to lump them together with sightings of mermaids and sea monsters.

But scientists are now finding that these giants of the sea are far more common and destructive than once imagined, prompting a rush of new studies and research projects. The goals are to better tally them, understand why they form, explore the possibility of forecasts, and learn how to better protect ships, oil platforms and people. -- Rogue Giants at Sea, by WILLIAM J. BROAD, Published: July 11, 2006

A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it. -- Max Planck

Those [scientists] who dislike entertaining contradictory thoughts are unlikely to enrich their science with new ideas. -- Max Planck

Once that's done, the story is changed to suit whatever purpose is required.

You mean like "punctuated equilibrium" and "quantum evolution"?

Or are you referring to the extraordinary results of

That's a very fitting description; "the old and the dull". I could not agree more, that's exactly how I view people that watch TV these days. My parents generation still watches TV, but everyone else I know and my siblings stream/torrent their content.

I remember reading this article about an ABC executive and her daughter, it described the new reality very well:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/04/business/media/04hulu.html?_r=1&ref=global

It looks like Lance Armstrong may not be eligible:

4.2.3 No drugs or stimulants shall be used by any member of the crew. An assurance must be given to the official observers at the time of the attempt that this requirement has been met.

He's under investigation for using such drugs/stimulants.

It's well known that the Wikipedia is heavily supported by Google. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/18/brin-and-wojcicki-give-500000-to-charity-behind-wikipedia/ People tend to want to please the folks that give them money, especially big billion dollar corporations.

Agreed. Now it's all "Everybody gets a trophy" and "You can have self-esteem and self-respect without actually earning it."...

Or even a nobel peace prize....

When Progressives run things, Crony-Capitalism insures plenty of State-sponsored, and enforced by threat of death/imprisonment, feudalism.

Yes, the U.S. under Teddy Roosevelt sure looked feudal. Seriously, dude, do you have any idea what the words you use actually mean?

Point of fact, the Greek economic crisis was largely a creation of banks; trying to fault progressivism is a serious disconnect from reality.

When conservatives run things, on the other hand, capitalism insures plenty of state-enforced feudalism. Under capitalism, the state creates and enforces "property rights" for the aristocrats, using the threat of death/imprisonment to keep the serfs in line. Property is force; if you don't believe that, go try to build yourself a cabin in the backyards of some 1%er's third or fourth house.

Funny what happens after Jobs dies. Retail workers get raises, Chinese production labor gets raises, one day off and two more slices of bread a week, and Apple stock pays dividends for the first time in twenty years. California finally gets auto registration fees from Apple's CEO.

And yet Bill Gates, who has given billions to philanthropy, is the "evil one."

I don't believe the US or Israel has admitted to any attack, so the US can continue to deny

Oh? Really?

They may be saying that they released it "by accident", but I'm pretty sure they've acknowledge they built it.

I checked your link, it does not say the US Government announced that it had used cyber tools to attack Iran. It was a report that said unnamed US Government officials said the US Government had used cyber tools to attack Iran. Sorry if you don't understand the difference.

Would you also suggest that in the United States nobody can make the argument that the court system is the appropriate for dealing with accusations of criminal conduct in this century?

Considering how vast, broad, and overwhelmingly complex our criminal code is, I absolutely would make that argument. It was recently pointed out that if everyone who is arrested did exercise their right to a jury trial, the system would come grinding to a halt:

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/opinion/sunday/go-to-trial-crash-the-justice-system.html

When more people are criminals than the court system can deal with, the problem is the law, not the behavior of the people. Most people are not murderers, robbers, rapists, arsonists, etc., yet almost everyone living in America is guilty of some felony offense. We need legal reforms, we need them to be sweeping and we need them to happen soon.

Yeah, you're right - you won't find coverage of this on any mainstream media propaganda site!

I wish somebody would cover this vital issue that's very important to me. So important that I've overlooked the literally hundreds of articles written about it in the last couple years.

Yep, you're right. No Mainstream Media coverage at all. Better write to Ron Paul, he'll save us!

I've heard that Bloomberg commutes via subway, and in the course of fact-checking a reply, I learned that the validity of that claim is somewhat fuzzy:

http://gothamist.com/2007/08/01/mayor_bloomberg_29.php
https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/01/nyregion/01bloomberg.html

I don't believe the US or Israel has admitted to any attack, so the US can continue to deny

Oh? Really?

They may be saying that they released it "by accident", but I'm pretty sure they've acknowledge they built it.

And once a country admits that it's created such software, publicly deflecting such blame gets a lot harder.

The link leads to another /. article, which leads to another, etc, until it eventually lands at this NY Times article.

This article is not an admission by anyone regarding Stuxnet, Flame, or anything else. It just allegedly quotes a bunch of anonymous sources about supposed top secret information.

I promise I don't work for the federal government.

People not voting has little to do with what shiny new way they can vote, and everything to do with why they should get out and vote for someone.

A big chunk of campaigning today seems to be why you shouldn't vote for the other guy. It's called Negative messaging, and is used because many folks believe it works. The irony is that when all sides use it, nobody comes-out the better, and the and sum total of candidate likability is insufficient to get people to the polls.

The real question is how to fix this? Ideally no-one would "go negative", but how to do you stop an arms-race that's been ongoing for decades?

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/02/opinion/hack-the-vote.html?_r=1

Inviting Bush supporters to a fund-raiser, the host wrote, ''I am committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year.''

Also, instead of just saying that it is unsourced, you should attempt to find the source - in this case, I got a match on CNN, Wired, USA Today, LA Times and so on.

It also was sourced to begin with. First follow the "Voting Fiasco, Part 279.236" reference in the same paragraph, scroll to the "deliver the vote" link and click on it to arrive at http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0828-08.htm

I'm on the conservative/libertarian side of things most (but not all) days, but the quote is real, assuming you accept the NY Times as a source.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/09/business/machine-politics-in-the-digital-age.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

The context is important; O'Dell wrote this as a Bush fundraiser in a fundraising letter, not in his role as Diebold president. That said, reverse it, if he'd been a Kerry/Obama backer and done the same; Republicans would be rightly very suspicious.

We've had issues with robocalls and funding irregularities in Canada, but not, as far as I am aware, any significant credible allegations of ballot or vote fraud.

In the last couple of elections, where I live, we've used paper ballots (filled out with a pen) sometimes coupled with optical scan. (The disabled can have someone assist them.) This provides a surprisingly useful audit trail. (e.g. consider a box filled with ballot papers all marked for one candidate, all with a very unusual pen colour. Don't laugh, it's happened in places like Texas).

Voters are enumerated, door-to-door by multi-party teams of volunteers. To vote you have to show photo id. Felons and prisoners are able to vote; we think it's unfair to deny politicians the vote. I strongly suspect the level of voter fraud and machine politics is substantially lower than the US; history generally seems to bear this out.

The Canadian system is far from perfect, though I'm inclined to think, like the banking system up here, it's somewhat superior to the current US system.

Obviously we are talking about different aspects of "illegal". Your point was that no US law was broken. That might even be correct (although I don't trust any intelligence agency in that regard, including those of my own country, Germany).

My point was that the US tend to be rather cavalier about ignoring the laws of other countries, and often act like this is their god-given right. While most other contries try at least to be discreet about it.

This tends to come across as arrogant, and sometimes as hypocritical when other countries mess with their computers and the US government complains about it:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/04/world/us-report-accuses-china-and-russia-of-internet-spying.html
This news is also an example of other countries trying to be discreet about it:
The Chinese obviously don't want to be publicly connected to a systematic hacking campaign. Their denials may not be very credible, but they still make the effort...

the uproar will be so big that everybody would try to know who is actually spied

The press might make a stink about it, but most Americans are too complacent to get up in arms about privacy. You might remember back when FISA and the massive telco wiretapping was in the news during Obama's run for President, and how he reversed positions to give the telcos immunity and suffered no consequences.

If anything, he wanted to appear strong on defense and basically told his pissed off base that their other option was to vote for McCain, who would be even worse on such matters.

Reference: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/02/world/americas/02iht-obama.1.14161755.html

Iran does not have any yet and so far, no proof has been provided that they actually are planning to produce them.

In February 2010, the IAEA issued a report scolding Iran for failing to explain purchases of sensitive technology as well as secret tests of high-precision detonators and modified designs of missile cones to accommodate larger payloads. Such experiments are closely associated with atomic warheads.

Source

the Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence agencies believe that Iran has yet to decide whether to resume a parallel program to design a nuclear warhead — a program they believe was essentially halted in 2003 and which would be necessary for Iran to build a nuclear bomb.

Source

You are massively uninformed. There is plenty of evidence of Iran's past intent, plenty of evidence in the last decade that Iran had a secret nuclear weapons program. Due to the effectiveness of Olympic Games, their ability to enrich weapons grade uranium has been considerably reduced. But the fact that Iran was so vocal for so long about not having a nuclear weapons program when they absolutely did, and the efforts they went through to deceive U.N. oversight, doesn't make me feel any more secure that today we have no evidence of the future intent of Iran to restart their nuclear weapons program.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/17/technology/acxiom-the-quiet-giant-of-consumer-database-marketing.html?_r=1
An easy read about what you can do with 50 trillion data “transactions” a year.

Since Obama personally chooses the kill targets himself, all you need to do is present proof that you have contributed to his reelection campaign.

So what if someone kills innocent civilians, threatens voters at the voting booths, calls women filthy names, threatens people with a "dead or alive" bounty, or has committed serious crimes. If you are on his list of donors or potential voters, Obama will use his dictatorial powers to ignore any laws that they have broken.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/04/attacks-mac-security-risks/
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/23/a-new-variant-of-malware-targets-mac-users/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/24/mac-malware_n_1448561.html
http://www.macworld.com/article/1160085/apple_posts_mac_defender_fix.html

You don't even have to turn over a rock in the last six months to have heard about the 600k plus macs that are infected.

Unless we (as a society) take some very concrete legal steps to make it illegal for our governments to use the results of certain types of surveillance, our children will read 1984 and ask "so, what's the big deal?"

This is not some paranoid worry. If the marginal cost of recording everything you say (online or offline) is near zero (and technology is driving it there), why shouldn't they keep it on file, just in case? (Think of how easy it would be to prosecute certain crimes if you could go back and re-play every conversation the criminal had).

Of course, before that happens "they" will probably buy the publishing rights to the novel, and use forever-copyright and DMCA to make sure nobody ever reads it :)

The wave was expected (relevant studies/reports were buried), and the disastrous internal failure was completely avoidable. The nuclear regulatory agency responsible for overseeing the plants were in bed with the industry, and thus there was no accountability resulting in multiple safety violations.

When management's motivation is not aligned with the public's, no industry is inherently "safe". The only solution? Hold management and regulatory agency officials criminally liable for corruption/negligence. Personally bankrupt all involved along with jail sentences. The corporate shield helps no one.

BP oil spill, Challenger disaster, etc. All easily avoidable...

“They completely ignored me in order to save Tepco money,” said Mr. Shimazaki, 65
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/10/world/asia/critics-say-japan-ignored-warnings-of-nuclear-disaster.html?pagewanted=all

"Frank N. von Hippel, a U.S. scientist, has estimated that "on the order of 1,000" people will die from cancer as a result of their exposure to radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi disaster,"
"According to a 2012 Yomiuri Shimbun survey, 573 deaths have been certified as "disaster-related" by 13 municipalities affected by the Fukushima nuclear disaster."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster#Casualties

The 400-page report, due to be released later this week, also describes a darkening mood at the prime minister's residence as a series of hydrogen explosions rocked the plant on March 14 and 15. It says Mr. Kan and other officials began discussing a worst-case outcome if workers at the Fukushima Daiichi plant were evacuated. This would have allowed the plant to spiral out of control, releasing even larger amounts of radioactive material into the atmosphere that would in turn force the evacuation of other nearby nuclear plants, causing further meltdowns.

The report quotes the chief cabinet secretary at the time, Yukio Edano, as having warned that such a 'demonic chain reaction' of plant meltdowns could result in the evacuation of Tokyo, 150 miles to the south.

"We would lose Fukushima Daini, then we would lose Tokai," Mr. Edano is quoted as saying, naming two other nuclear plants. "If that happened, it was only logical to conclude that we would also lose Tokyo itself."

Source: NY Times article on top-level report reviewing the disaster.

I am surprised they did says the ripple effect would result in requiring whole of Asia to evacuated and soon the world. What makes them think that reactors around the reactor would not be shutdown, before they are evacuated. Or that given the prediction, they can think ahead and shutdown the reactors near Fukushima ahead.

The 400-page report, due to be released later this week, also describes a darkening mood at the prime minister's residence as a series of hydrogen explosions rocked the plant on March 14 and 15. It says Mr. Kan and other officials began discussing a worst-case outcome if workers at the Fukushima Daiichi plant were evacuated. This would have allowed the plant to spiral out of control, releasing even larger amounts of radioactive material into the atmosphere that would in turn force the evacuation of other nearby nuclear plants, causing further meltdowns.

The report quotes the chief cabinet secretary at the time, Yukio Edano, as having warned that such a 'demonic chain reaction' of plant meltdowns could result in the evacuation of Tokyo, 150 miles to the south.

"We would lose Fukushima Daini, then we would lose Tokai," Mr. Edano is quoted as saying, naming two other nuclear plants. "If that happened, it was only logical to conclude that we would also lose Tokyo itself."

Source: NY Times article on top-level report reviewing the disaster.

You are wrong. Black Death DNA was extracted from teeth of victims in the Tower of London and it's the same Y. pestis as we have today: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/13/science/13plague.html?_r=1

There's at least one company, Virtual Gold, doing data mining in basketball and their product, Advanced Scout, has been in use since the 90s. Here is a paper on it. I don't think the analysis is the same as this one, but Moneyball style stuff is not new to the NBA.

There was also this article in the NYTimes by Michael Lewis that discussed some aspects of this kind of analysis, e.g. " Battier learns a lot from studying the data on the superstars he is usually assigned to guard. For instance, the numbers show him that Allen Iverson is one of the most efficient scorers in the N.B.A. when he goes to his right; when he goes to his left he kills his team. The Golden State Warriors forward Stephen Jackson is an even stranger case. “Steve Jackson,” Battier says, “is statistically better going to his right, but he loves to go to his left — and goes to his left almost twice as often.”"

Let me guess, the "violence" you are talking of is actually the fact that you have to pay taxes to finance part of the society that is supporting you?

Just like chimps, the coercive hierarchy is primarily enforced by the mere threat of violence. And, similarly, an occasional example must be made.

Do elementary-school students really need laptops?

No, they don't. Computer have no positive effect on child brains, which develops using interactions with its environment. TVs and computers are a real threat to childs consciousness and intelligence. BTW, you may ask some Silicon Valley's gurus why they put their childs in technology free schools : http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/technology/at-waldorf-school-in-silicon-valley-technology-can-wait.html

I don't remember much shrinkage of Government under eight years of George Bush Jr.

Perhaps you can remind me. How many departments and agencies were closed and how many Acts rescinded?

Typical Obama drone - blame BOOOOOSH!!!!!!

Eh? According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Government spending in the US shrank over the first three years of Obama's administration. That hadn't happened since Nixon!

And stay away from any and all bacteria and viruses... whoops, you just got an allergy. Oh, and stay inside, too, because that bus causes cancer.

Sorry, but you must be very young and gullible. "The best way to good health is to eat good foods in reasonable portions, exercise, and keep the weight off" is absolute bullshit. Yes, those things are all good for you (having good genes is even better) but they won't stop you from catching cold or the flu or e-coli.

You WILL get sick. You WILL die. Living a healthy lifestyle may stave it off, but it will happen.

Now excuse me, my arthritis is acting up and I need an aspirin or a Naproxin. Yeah, I'm old. Yeah, I'm healthy. Except for arthritis.

Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die. You have exactly one life, don't waste it trying to stay healthy, because you're not going to no matter what you do or how hard you try.

I'm pretty sure there was a report of SOME guy dying. Let me look it up.

*intermission*

Oops, you were right, if this was the case I was recalling.

But the top result for my search (keywords "guy dies from popcorn") was a man being shot for eating popcorn too loudly in the theater during a screening of 'Black Swan', while the third result was a man dying on Popcorn Road. I'm an evil person, because I've got 'Thunder Road' by Springsteen in my head, only it's Popcorn Road.

Frankly, I think it's awesome that we've gone from talking about scientific exploration on Mars to an in-depth discussion about microwaved popcorn. Oh, internet, I love thee.

For those of you willing to listen to my reason and not knee jerk hate me, you have to understand that there are certain people who very carefully hide IN ORDER to hate on their neighbors in SMALL TOWN forums. If you live in a big city, consider yourself immune. Otherwise please hear me out:

Judging from your username and the source you linked to, I seriously doubt you have much experience with small, midwestern communities, and definitely know less about them than those of us who actually live there, but sure, I'll hear you out.

But in SMALL TOWN forums, among a couple hundred or thousand people who are neighbors, hiding and hating is a serious problem, and should be fought.

And you know this how? Membership in "SMALL TOWN forums" on the internet are not necessarily limited to people who actually live there, you know. For all we know, the prick calling Jim's wife a methwhore is some 13 year old in his mother's Orange County, CA basement.

Even it it wasn't, who gives a fuck? Sticks and stones, man, sticks and stones.

Only in that context, a small town forum, do I agree anonymity need to be unmasked.

Why? So you can hunt down the individual who said something you don't like and harass them for it?

Have you ever even been to a small midwestern community, let alone lived in one? I have and do, and let me tell you, if you're different in any way (like, say, being a "nerd" or homosexual), anonymity is a survival necessity. Matthew Shepard's story is a perfect example of what happens when rednecks find out that you're something they don't like. Or maybe that's what you're gunning for?

There are people out there with serious problems, and they ruin small community forums with their abusive attitude by constantly steering all discussions to their strife.

No, what 'ruins' small communities is coastal assholes who insist they know how we middle Americans think. You don't. Piss off.

You are talking about one troll who can basically sit on a forum and utterly destroy it, for a small community.

No. See, around these parts, there's a saying - "If I took every bad thing some idiot said about me to heart, I'd never get any sleep." That wisdom applies to internet forums as well.

Please understand that this is a real problem before you form an opinion on the matter:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/us/small-town-gossip-moves-to-the-web-anonymous-and-vicious.html

So, to back your assumptions about the effect of online negativity in rural America, you link to... a New York Times article? Really dude? Right, because the asshats that refer to this entire region as "flyover country" are going to be the experts on heartland psychology. And I'm a flying golden panda bear.

but you do understand the right you want is abused? you do understand that this abuse is the source of the problem? it's not about jack booted thugs taking away your rights just because they are controlling assholes, but because there is a logical, credible reason for the limitations?

examples:

http://community.nytimes.com/comments/www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/us/small-town-gossip-moves-to-the-web-anonymous-and-vicious.html?sort=recommended

9.
Laura
Cleveland, OH
September 20th, 2011
8:58 am

I share Mrs. James' sentiments about negative posting on social media sites. My husband and I were harshly spoken about by Columbia Local School District (District 4705 Lorain County Ohio) teachers and parents because we spearheaded a campaign against the school levy and revealed facts in the newspaper which the school district would rather not be exposed. Persons, both teachers and parents, who posted on Columbia Station Chalik and Columbia P.T.A. through Facebook were downright vicious. We took that viciousness and published it in the local tattletale newspaper, The Rural-Urban Record. When people know they are being watched, they tend to check their behaviour. We made what people thought was anonymous public. Remember, if it's on a web site, it's public because it can be found. If what Mrs. James is experiencing is slander, all of what is out there can be discovered through tracing URLs; she will then find out who is making the comments and they will no longer be anonymous. They have damaged her. Those people need to be stopped. We found our way--we published their stupidity in the newspaper and we had the material to back up our statements. I hope she finds her way.

good one:

12.
Mark
Indianapolis
September 20th, 2011
9:52 am

The flip side of freedom is personal responsibility. But we don't teach that in our schools. It is all about our precious first amendment rights. When these rights are taken to their extreme, we have tyranny and abuse of others, which is what we are seeing in this town and in cities and towns all across the country. We could always pass more law to punish those who post false or misleading information, but the real problem lies in the angry, fearful small minded people who would post these malicious lies just to have a moment's reprieve from their own miserable existence. The earlier commenter quoting Jesus's "love one another as you love yourself is on target, but it makes the assumption that these people love themselves. They don't. Until these people can look in the mirror and like what they see, they will continue to spew their hateful message...because that is who they are.

and my favorite:

Zack Worrell
charlottesville, va
September 20th, 2011
1:12 pm

I'm no hater, but I truly dislike many opinions and attitudes of Americans today. I'm certain that I am not alone here. I feel that the internet, and all of the ways in which it is a wonderful tool, fails to be a vehicle for changing opposing attitudes and helping to resolve disagreements.

As I write this there is somebody sitting there saying" this guy is a loser" or "he has no idea about what he is talking about." But that is fine and perfectly healthy, that is why living in a free country is so amazing. We should be always be grateful for this even when our dialogues turn into debate.

The problem I see comes with some specific aspects of how we use the Internet. Specifically our identity and
the desire to use anonymity to shield ourselves from critics. The sad fact is that our American Bill of Rights was created to protect freedom of speech. But the problem now stems from the fact that we abuse this right when we disguise our identity to say harmful things that infringe upon the rights of others. If

(instant -1 from slashdot crowd)

For those of you willing to listen to my reason and not knee jerk hate me, you have to understand that there are certain people who very carefully hide IN ORDER to hate on their neighbors in SMALL TOWN forums. If you live in a big city, consider yourself immune. Otherwise please hear me out:

Anonymity is important, for example, in Syria. Anonymity is important, for example, with Wikileaks and Anonymous and any whistle blowers, because of the power imbalance involved. Anonymity is basically besides the fact on national or international level comment boards, such as Slashdot: you might as well be anonymous, since only the force of your ideas matter, not your name.

But in SMALL TOWN forums, among a couple hundred or thousand people who are neighbors, hiding and hating is a serious problem, and should be fought.

Only in that context, a small town forum, do I agree anonymity need to be unmasked.

There are people out there with serious problems, and they ruin small community forums with their abusive attitude by constantly steering all discussions to their strife. And it's always from careful hiding with these characters. You are talking about one troll who can basically sit on a forum and utterly destroy it, for a small community.

Please understand that this is a real problem before you form an opinion on the matter:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/us/small-town-gossip-moves-to-the-web-anonymous-and-vicious.html

Obviously a Troll from the 1%... I'm an experienced network admin in a small crappy southern town where they want pay $50K, crap benefits, and want you to work like a dog... but I could afford to accept that kind of wage here because the COL is lower if they'd here me... but here experience is unimportant -- cost is everything... being "old" is a disadvantage...

months back I was reading a NYTimes article [See: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/us/bay-area-technology-professionals-cant-get-hired-as-industry-moves-on.html?pagewanted=all ] about of the number of experienced tech people in Silicon Valley that can't get jobs because the big companies like Google, Apple, Oracle, and so forth are interested in young and cheap --- that's how the execs afford to pay themselves so well...

Of course I'm sure that since you are willing to save $45K it's covering the cost of your housing or Cadillacs at the expense of the guy you'd hire who has to live in a roach infested closet in Castro valley

So the reality is if you are an old tech professional and get fired or laid off you are not likely to get re-hired... The H1B program is a corporate welfare program. It should be eliminated as Pork. Yes I can hear the squeeling--- that's pork too...