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I really wish people would quit saying that we have an economy that needs fixing. Really, we've just been through a major mortgage crisis, and the most anyone can say the economy is going sideways. I'd say that bodes pretty damn good for our economy, just wait a few more months until the banks get their crap together and the economy will be humming along again. Also here's a few links just to prove a point:

U.S. manufacturing activity rose unexpectedly in May...
http://www.forbes.com/afxnewslimited/feeds/afx/2008/06/02/afx5070060.html

Gross domestic product expanded at an annual pace of 0.9 percent from January through March, up from the 0.6 percent projected last month...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aERpSgHrPI_Y&refer=home

What do you call a recession where the economy keeps going up and up, even if a bit sluggishly? Well, my friends, you call that an expansion.
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2008/5/29/the-strangest-recession-in-economic-history.html

Fewer Americans than forecast applied for unemployment benefits last week...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aDeTc4KzXjhs&refer=home

Recession? Where? Looking back months from now, we may find that the economy grew 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007, 1.2 percent in the first quarter of this year, and 2.5 percent (according to a model from Macroeconomic Advisers) in the second quarter....
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2008/5/9/the-recession-that-wasnt.html#

The unemployment rate edged down in April and employers cut far fewer jobs than expected...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/02/AR2008050200489.html?nav=rss_email/components

Barely more than half of college enrollees finish a bachelor's degree after 6 years.* You're just proving my point about cherry picking. And talk about throwing money at the problem, it costs over $17k in tuition per student per year for a 4-year public university.**

* http://www.higheredinfo.org/dbrowser/index.php?level=nation&mode=graph&state=0&submeasure=27
** http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/paying-for-college/2008/04/10/how-much-does-college-cost.html

"Oh yes, a war for oil. And how great has that worked out?"

Badly.

"Considering that oil is at record highs, I don't think that it was a "war for oil" because had it been a "war for oil" we would have more oil."

You can't use the outcome as evidence, because it is flagrantly obvious that the planning for the aftermath of the Iraq invasion was inadequate and the expectations quite different. There weren't enough troops to properly secure the country. Some military people said so before the invasion, but it's taken years for others to admit they were right. I'm sure Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld expected the oil to be flowing copiously from a mostly peaceful and democratic Iraq by now -- a demonstration for the whole Middle East of how it should be done. That's what they said, anyway.

You've really got to go back and read the bold speeches from the time before or very shortly after the invasion.

"As for it being a war on oil, give your baseless theories a rest and take off the tin-foil hat."

Baseless? Speculative, maybe, but not baseless.

Here's the thing: what were the first things secured in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion? Was it the museum full of priceless artifacts? No. But those could hardly be considered military priorities, so I can kind of understand it, even if it was entirely predictable and unnecessary.

Was it the Iraqi army weapons dumps that would later be raided to make IEDs? No. A big strategic mistake.

Even stranger in light of the concern about WMDs: was it the well-known nuclear facility on the outskirts of Baghdad where the locals were rolling out drums of uranium oxide in the days after the invasion? No.

No, it was the oil wells -- many secured within DAYS of the invasion. Pretty impressive, really, but there was plenty of planning beforehand, and resources devoted to the task.

By what they did and did not promptly secure in Iraq the US made its priorities VERY clear in the days and weeks following the invasion. Actions speak louder than words. You are confusing the FAILURE of US planning for evidence that there wasn't a plan and expectation of how Iraq would work out eventually.

Iraq has the second-biggest conventional oil reserves in the world. It's hard to imagine that is unimportant to the equation. I'm certain the US did not plan to take Iraq's oil overtly. That's too cynical and it's unnecessary. But I'm as certain they were indeed hoping to get it flowing to the world markets after many years of embargo, which would increase competition with other suppliers and allow the US to buy it at a fair price.

In fact, the plan might even work out in the long run, at which point I'm sure Bush and his cronies will take credit, unless the whole thing collapses in on itself in civil war instead.

It looks like the the GOP's own Ron Paul was the only one to vote against it, according to this article.

The US could become a fuel exporting nation if we devote enough land to algae farming.

What about panicky "over-farming" reports like this one?

Also, vast algae-farming lakes will affect climates... I come from Kyiv, Ukraine, where weather became noticeably wetter over the decades after the huge lakes were created for giant hydro-electric stations...

Don't worry, the Republicans are certain to make sure we hold the next president responsible.

Wikipedia entry on disparities between way infant mortality is measured.
US News & World Report article on same (doesn't cite sources, though news magazines almost never do).
Slate article on impact of premature births on infant mortality rate.
Boston Globe article on rate of premature births in U.S.

It would appear there is something to the claim that better medical care can skew infant mortality rate upwards.

>>Why should you care if the airlines are making a profit? The more lucrative the industry, the more companies enter the field, the more competition, and the better prices and service we get. Maybe not right away, but in the long run we do like the companies that provide services to us to minimize their costs.

That would explain our $100/barrel oil while Exxon just posted the biggest profit of any corporation ever on earth ($40.6 billion). Just for perspective, Exxon's profits last year were around $10 billion.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/article/chevron-exxon-record-profits-reaped-cost-sliding-economy-strapped-consumers_461941_1.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/01/exxon-posts-record-profit_n_84463.html
http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/economy/2008/02/01/exxons-profits-measuring-a-record-windfall.html

I agree with your post except for that last part.

-b

"The amazing thing is that many students are learning occupations that are dependent on IP and yet continue to ignore it. I wonder who they expect to provide them a paycheck once they become producers? Or would they rather go the inefficient route of millions of one-offs?"

Exactly how are they suppose to learn to use all this software without being able to actually use it? Because students already have enough expenses with the cost of books and tuition raising much faster than inflation, and it's been doing this for at least 8 years now (article dated Oct 2000). So where are they suppose to get the extra couple grand it costs to pay for all the software that industries expect them to know? Think schools are handing out free copies of Office or Visual C++? I wouldn't know a tenth of what I know if it wasn't for downloading software.

Slashdot is a news site, so it references newspapers all the time. If it were a healthcare site, it would reference the Cleveland Clinic more often. Anyway, most Americans can probably only name the Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins (maybe UCLA) along with their own local hospital. According to US News & World Report last year, Cleveland Clinic ranks 4th of all hospitals in the nation.

To make a better analogy, it isn't Harvard or Yale, but it's certainly Ivy League. It beat Mass General, Columbia and Cornell, Duke, UCSF, Barnes-Jewish, U of M, Stanford, Yale, Cedars-Sinai, and everybody else.

dom

• Blu-ray player sales dominate HD DVD, 3 to 1
• Latest Japanese data shows Blu-ray outsells HD-DVD 9:1
• Blu-ray outselling HD DVD 2 to 1 this year
• Blu-ray Winning Europe 4-to-1
• Sony claims Blu-ray had 95% Australian HD market in October
• Blu-ray Dominates HD- DVD in Holiday shopping
• Disc Sales: 'Pirates' Leads Blu-ray to Decisive Weekly Win Over HD DVD
• PS3 to Go Blu-ray Profile 1.1 With New Firmware Update
• Blu-Ray Wins a Battle in the High-Def War

The whole purpose of my pointing out the Terror Prevention Buill of 1996 was that the Republicans took out any effective terrorism prevention methods that were proposed. I am aware that it was useless for the stated purpose, but it was the Republicans that castrated it.

Also of not in the 90's Senate was Phil Graham's killing of banking transparency regulations promulgated for offshore transactions, from his position of chairman of the Senate Banking Committee. Not only did this hurt terrorist prevention attempt, but it directly aided ENRON, who was a major contributor into his campaign finances. Graham's wife, Wendy, was a board member of ENRON. For financial gain, Phil Graham blocked terrorism preventative legislation.

Again: The Democrats are The lamer of Two Evils.

The claim that we didn't aid bin Laden in Afghanistan is completely erroneous too. The aid was funnelled into the Pakistani Army's intelligence wing, ISI, which in the 80's was headed by current Bush Totalitarian bud, and Pakistan dictator who overthrew an democratically elected government, Pervez Musharraf. The CIA chose this hands-off method, because they were still feeling the pain of the Church Investigations, and did not want to feel the effects from blowback on it.

This is hardly my position. Before 911, it was considered to be a given. Here's a link to a US News and World Report 1998 editorial, hardly a member of the "liberal media":

Fouad Ajami, "Mr. bin Laden's neighborhood: Scorn for Washington, and fissures among fanatics who embrace fire", US News and World Report, September 7, 1998

Don't pitch those Crawford cowchips around me.

I'm not sure what the capsaicin content of curry is, compared to a habanero, but here's two articles that provide decent sources:
http://www.nutrasanus.com/cayenne.html
http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/070720/20chilipeppers.htm?s_cid=rss:20chilipeppers.htm

This link gives you some sources straight from the National Institute of Health: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&q=Capsaicin+health+benefits+study+site%3ANih.gov&btnG=Search Everything from blood pressure to osteo- and rheumatoid arthritis has been studied lately, with interesting results.

I think you're abstracting too far. It's possible to say that the Federal Government should not rebuild New Orleans while saying that it should still invest in other infrastructure.

First of all, there's big difference between disaster relief and disaster recovery. Relief is bringing in food, water, medicine and so on. Recovery goes well beyond that, to rebuilding of homes and businesses. It is thoroughly consistent to say that the federal government should help with the first, but not with the second.

The big problem with New Orleans is that it's not a particularly good place to build a city. If the Federal Government comes along and spends a bunch of money rebuilding it, then those people living there will (a) not buy enough insurance to cover themselves (why, if the Federal Government will bail them out?) and (b) won't decide to live in a less-risky place in circumstances where they probably should. It's what economists call a moral hazard -- an incentive for people to take risks that they should not take because somebody else bears the cost.

Despite rhetoric coming from politicians, the "majority of citizens" are not being left in the dust. Since 1977, after adjusting for inflation, the median wage is up about 40%. See http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2007/9/24/why-americans-really-are-getting-richer.html

the difference between a high B average and a low A, for instance... that could mean the difference between admission to an elite private college and a less exclusive public one

Unfortunately, life expectancy figures are very dependent on infant mortality rates. We measure infant mortality differently than a number of countries, and in a way which increases our reported rate.

Your point is reinforced when you consider that the top 9 hospitals in the nation are all non-profit (I wasn't able to verify number 10). All 14 in that honor roll look like non-profits.

Whenever you see the RIAA whining about how Piracy/IP Theft/Copyright Theft etc. is a major crime, remember this list.
Piracy is not even in the top ten.

I dunno, if some of the worst of the current political trends continue, we'll end up being the Vorlons instead.

Vorlons? More like Vogons. You know, the fat, bureaucratic bullies who write horrible emo poetry and eventually demolished the Earth in order to build a useless bypass.

Three words ... long DMV queues.

Standing in a queue at DMV is bad enough. Actually we have to stand in multiple queues. Line A is for applications, Line B is for photos, Line C is for eye test, line D is for payment. Now we'll be asked to show up at the DMV with a wallet stuffed with more IDs, SSN cards, birth certificates, and electric bills to prove identity, citizenship, and residency. One person who forgets one of these things gums up the DMV queues!

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/061210/ 18id.htm

C+ average at Princeton = daddy was an alum and donated a lot of money while his son/daughter partied/sat around all through college.

Top engineering schools in the US (in '05 cuz it was the first I found): #5 University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (public state school), #18 Princeton. If an A average at UIUC is worth a C+ average at Princeton, why is the ranking higher? Actually, don't answer that because I know about all the complications with school rankings.

I went to Pomona College and took computer science classes at Harvey Mudd, which is consistently ranked as one of the top non-graduate engineering programs. I didn't like the atmosphere out there and transferred to UIUC which is near my home. I have gotten good grades at both schools and can honestly say that it is more difficult to get an A at UIUC compared to the smaller private Harvey Mudd. The main reason for this is that the teachers are much more available and willing to help at smaller schools, while you generally have to figure everything out on your own at large schools. Larger schools are also much more likely to have classes that are intended to kill off the weaker students, usually by making the class very difficult, which again makes it hard to get an A.

That really doesn't matter that much though. The point is that you sounded like a jack ass. Troll me if you want, I just have a problem with people who think they are better because they go to a private school.

The price tag for Sealand is reported in the $1 billion range -- a bit steep for a bunch of overgrown w4r3z kiddies, even with $13,714 kicked in by a bunch of undergrown w4r3z kiddies. Particularly since the whole "Sealand" thing is just an elaborate prank in the first place.

Do you have a cite?

I have no clue where you pulled that number from - but I highly doubt NCSU is higher rated than my ungergrad. alma mater, UF, and my grad. alma mater, GaTech, along with Stanford, MIT, UC-Berkeley, Perdue, Carnegie Mellon, Penn State, Cornell, UT-Austin, etc.

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/eng /brief/engrank_brief.php

NC State fifth-ranked? Is that really true? According to US News, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's engineering program is ranked fifth, NC State is 33rd. http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/eng /brief/engrank_brief.php That's for grad schools. Is NC State really, really better at undergrad than graduate school or what? I don't see where you're getting that number. NC State does have a great solar house, though.

Gates claims he never said this.
USA News

Not that I give any credence to US News & World Report, but twenty-sixth isn't all that impressive if they were placing something in a location solely to leech good students.

And exactly why would being a large university have anything do with it at all?

I just started a business (read about it on my blog ) and was looking into this.

The best resource I've found so far is: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/best-health-in surance/hr_commercial_plan_2006.htm

I personally have had a HDHP Plan from Blue Cross Blue Sheild of GA with a 2600 deductable and 100% in network co-insurance past that with an allowance for preventative care.

My mother in-law, who works in benefits for a major national organization, recommends the simplicity of a highly rated HMO like Kaiser if you can find one locally.

          --Michael

George W. Bush a bookworm? White House aides say it's so. The born-again president's literary interests start with the predictable, such as his daily readings from the Bible. But he also enjoys books about Abraham Lincoln, his political hero, and, of course, yarns about baseball-in a past life, he was, after all, the managing partner of the Texas Rangers. Staffers say the president is actually engaged in an informal contest with White House senior adviser Karl Rove to see who can read more books this year. The latest score card has Bush ahead 60-50.A sampling of the president's reading list so far this year, according to White House aides:

Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar by Edvard Radzinsky
American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin Sherwin (a biography of Robert Oppenheimer, an inventor of the atomic bomb)
Clemente: The Passion and Grace of Baseball's Last Hero by David Maraniss
Lincoln: A Life of Purpose and Power by Richard Carwardine
Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second Inaugural by Ronald C. White Jr.
Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday
Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women by Geraldine Brooks
Polio: An American Story by David Oshinsky (discussing how polio affected the United States in the mid-20th century)
The Big Bam: The Life and Times of Babe Ruth by Leigh Montville
The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History by John M. Barry
Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky
The Stranger by Albert Camus

Donald H. Rumsfeld was sworn in as the 21st Secretary of Defense on January 20, 2001. Before assuming his present post, the former Navy pilot had also served as the 13th Secretary of Defense, White House Chief of Staff, U.S. Ambassador to NATO, U.S. Congressman and chief executive officer of two Fortune 500 companies.

The previous story seems to suggest the industry has not stagnated at all, just Microsoft who seems to be making them more irrelevant with every passing day.

The fix for Microsoft? Get rid of half your employees, ask the consumer what they want and give it to them. Easy isn't it? Worked for Warren Buffet.

I don't understand. Is it some secret that people that do not persue higher education sucessfully are more likely to enter the military?

Apparently. This covers it.

Or is it just impolite to point out the obvious - only morons volunteer to get killed for their country in a war to make Haliburton rich?

Less cynical Americans call them heroes.

I'm surprised I don't see a link to the original story yet, so here it is:

http://www.mydd.com/story/2006/10/24/122153/98

From the story:

--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl, --AZ-01: Rick Renzi, --AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth, --CA-04: John Doolittle, --CA-11: Richard Pombo, --CA-50: Brian Bilbray, --CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave, --CO-05: Doug Lamborn, --CO-07: Rick O'Donnell, --CT-04: Christopher Shays, --FL-13: Vernon Buchanan, --FL-16: Joe Negron, --FL-22: Clay Shaw, --ID-01: Bill Sali, --IL-06: Peter Roskam, --IL-10: Mark Kirk, --IL-14: Dennis Hastert, --IN-02: Chris Chocola, --IN-08: John Hostettler, --IA-01: Mike Whalen, --KS-02: Jim Ryun, --KY-03: Anne Northup, --KY-04: Geoff Davis, --MD-Sen: Michael Steele, --MN-01: Gil Gutknecht, --MN-06: Michele Bachmann, --MO-Sen: Jim Talent, --MT-Sen: Conrad Burns, --NV-03: Jon Porter, --NH-02: Charlie Bass, --NJ-07: Mike Ferguson, --NM-01: Heather Wilson, --NY-03: Peter King, --NY-20: John Sweeney, --NY-26: Tom Reynolds, --NY-29:

--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl --AZ-01: Rick Renzi --AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth --CA-04: John Doolittle --CA-11: Richard Pombo --CA-50: Brian Bilbray --CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave --CO-05: Doug Lamborn --CO-07: Rick O'Donnell --CT-04: Christopher Shays --FL-13: Vernon Buchanan --FL-16: Joe Negron --FL-22: Clay Shaw --ID-01: Bill Sali --IL-06: Peter Roskam --IL-10: Mark Kirk --IL-14: Dennis Hastert --IN-02: Chris Chocola --IN-08: John Hostettler --IA-01: Mike Whalen --KS-02: Jim Ryun --KY-03: Anne Northup --KY-04: Geoff Davis --MD-Sen: Michael Steele --MN-01: Gil Gutknecht --MN-06: Michele Bachmann --MO-Sen: Jim Talent --MT-Sen: Conrad Burns --NV-03: Jon Porter --NH-02: Charlie Bass --NJ-07: Mike Ferguson --NM-01: Heather Wilson --NY-03: Peter King --NY-20: John Sweeney --NY-26: Tom Reynolds --NY-29: Randy Kuhl --NC-08: Robin Hayes --NC-11: Charles Taylor --OH-01:

HEY DON'T SAY THAT... RAH-RAH-RA-RA "BIAS" RA RA RA RA "Gosh, that's just despicable, this is the best President we've ever had" RA-RA-RA-RA! BIAS, BIAS, RA RA. Just listen: http://images.usnews.com/usnews/news/articles/0610 25/061025baronebush-hi.mp3

Some articles to think about in the upcoming election:

Jon Kyl Rick Renzi J.D. Hayworth John Doolittle Richard Pombo Brian Bilbray Marilyn Musgrave Doug Lamborn Rick O'Donnell Christopher Shays Vernon Buchanan Joe Negron Clay Shaw Bill Sali Peter Roskam Mark Kirk Dennis Hastert Chris Chocola John Hostettler Mike Whalen Jim Ryun Anne Northup Geoff Davis Michael Steele Gil Gutknecht Michele Bachmann Jim Talent Conrad Burns Jon Porter Charlie Bass Mike Ferguson Heather Wilson Peter King John Sweeney Tom Reynolds Randy Kuhl Robin Hayes Charles Taylor Steve Chabot Jean Schmidt Deborah Pryce

That is a shit website with a politically biased agenda.

Here are some reputable sources:

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/biztech/articles/0602 13/13tech_nemko.htm
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/biztech/articles/0102 26/archive_005064.htm
http://money.cnn.com/popups/2006/moneymag/bestjobs /frameset.exclude.html

Especially check out that last website. Top Job: Software Engineer.

"Software engineers are needed in virtually every part of the economy, making this one of the fastest-growing job titles in the U.S"

That is a shit website with a politically biased agenda.

Here are some reputable sources:

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/biztech/articles/0602 13/13tech_nemko.htm
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/biztech/articles/0102 26/archive_005064.htm
http://money.cnn.com/popups/2006/moneymag/bestjobs /frameset.exclude.html

Especially check out that last website. Top Job: Software Engineer.

"Software engineers are needed in virtually every part of the economy, making this one of the fastest-growing job titles in the U.S"

We're already halfway there. How long can it be before someone makes the frikkin' obvious next development?

Remember when you fold your hat, you want the shiny side of the foil OUT, or it won't work to protect you from Karl Rove's Mind Control Rays.

Before you start implying that someone is paranoid, you may want to do a little fact checking. Going over the grandparent post line by line:

• Would it surprise you to learn that these doctored photos were placed by someone on the far Right trying to discredit the centrist media?

  Note that he's not saying that it's true, just suggesting that it might be. And, given that this is a well known technique in spin control / psyops, it isn't an unreasonable questions.

• Sort of like the way the fake 60 Minutes article on Bush's little vacation from the Air National Guard was placed by a GOP operative trying to smear CBS and Dan Rather.

  Well, he's certainly not alone in this theory, and it is consistent with what Rove is known to have done to Alan Dixon, John McCain, and many others.

• The goons on the Right in this country are playing a very deep game.

  Goons is subjective, and pejorative, but the rest of this point is darned hard to argue with. When a party rises from the mat to take control of all three branches of the federal Government, is a coordinated effort lasting decades, you'd be hard pressed to call it luck.

• They're sophisticated enough to data mine,

  Widely known

• and they're morally deformed enough to try to smear the patriotism of a triple amputee war hero.

  His name was Max Clealand, and they did just what he said.

• It's just fascinating that the paste-eaters at LGF are always the ones who find these doctored photos,

  "Always" is an exaduration, and "paste-eaters" is (probably) unjustified, but other than that it is an interesting point. They certainly have found a number of them, and always leaning to the right.

• but never say a word about the ones on GOP web sites that show too much smoke on the destroyed World Trade Center.

  This did happen, and so far as I know none of them raised a stink, so he's spot on.

• With a news media that's run by press agents,

  Also well known.

• and a government run by lobbyists,

  Well, they write the laws, and

• you should just be prepared to only believe your own experience, and the media that you absolutely trust.

  If you want to, go ahead and argue that you should believe sources you don't trust.

• Other than that, expect it to be lies.

  Thing that aren't true, are...lies. Again, pretty hard to argue with.

• Then, get ready for the struggle to save our freedom that is inevitable.

  Everyone from Ben "A Republic, if you can keep it" Franklin has agreed with this.

What is backdating?
Many companies, it now appears, allowed executives, board members, and other employees to look back over the history of their company's stock price movements and pick a date in the past on which they wanted their options to be granted. Thus, the executives could, and did, guarantee themselves a profit by selecting a date on which the stock price was very low. The options allowed the executives to buy stock in the future at the old, low stock price.

What are the rules governing backdating of options?
Companies are free to give employees the right to purchase stock at whatever price the company wants, but they are supposed to reveal those actions to investors and deduct the costs of the options from profits. Until the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, companies were free to give employees options, and not deduct the cost from profits, as long as the price at which the employee could buy future stock was the price set by the market on the day the option was granted. Now, companies must deduct even the costs of those options from their profits.

If companies are free to backdate options, why are companies coming under SEC scrutiny?
Many companies, it turns out, hid the backdating from investors and failed to subtract the costs from their profits. Lying to investors can be grounds for criminal prosecution by the Justice Department and civil penalties by the SEC. These actions may also mean the companies filed inaccurate tax forms, which could cause the Internal Revenue Service to demand fines and penalties.

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/ brief/univmas/umwest/tier1/t1univmas_w_brief.php ./start_childish_taunting

humble bill Well, he does live in a forrested area, though... in one of the nicest mansions in the world!

And you only have ONE shot. ONE try. ONE single chance to prove that you're "worth" it. It's not like "write to a billion colleges and even if MIT rejects you, the university of Wallawalla will accept you". Studying abroad is also not necessarily an option.

And you only have ONE shot. ONE try. ONE single chance to prove that you're "worth" it. It's not like "write to a billion colleges and even if MIT rejects you, the university of Wallawalla will accept you". Studying abroad is also not necessarily an option.

I go to UC Berkeley, it comes highly recommended. Maybe it doesn't have quite the funding of the other members of the big four, but has excellent, mostly very friendly faculty and students, not to mention the Bay Area is a great place to live.

When they talk about China and India, western business executives can't stop using the word "scale." Take the experience of Blizzard Entertainment, based in Irvine, Calif. It took a year to attract a million paying subscribers in North America for World of Warcraft, its popular online video game; in one month, the company signed up 1.5 million for the Chinese version of the game. How about cellphones? There are 400 million cellphone users in China, and, on average, they replace their phones every three to six months. Consumers in China can choose from something like 900 different models, compared with only 80 or so in the United States. Companies like Samsung offer a new handset model in China as often as once a week.