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Got Evil? Buy it Here!

Saint Aardvark writes "I just came across VillainSupply.com, and I'm sold. From Doomsday Devices to Robotic Tigers to Randroids, these guys have got it all. Don't forget the convenient, accessible self-destruct device!"

68 of 216 comments (clear)

  1. two weeks by Alric · · Score: 5, Funny

    I give them two weeks until some humorless secret service agent sends a threatening letter to their ISP.

    Alric.
    To Elbereth...

    1. Re:two weeks by einhverfr · · Score: 2

      Yeah but didn't BBSpot report that Microsoft had bought Evil Power(tm) from Satan? If so, isn't this trademark infringement?

      --

      LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
  2. henchjobs by Zugok · · Score: 3, Funny

    Damn it, none of the links would work in the henchjobs section. That sucks. Just when I got used to entering my resume online to all this recruitment agencies.

    I am a rocket scientist you know.

    --
    "I just can't sit while people are saying nonsense in a meeting without saying it's nonsense" J Watson, Sci Am 288:(4)51
  3. Another great... by SquireCD · · Score: 3, Funny

    www.findanddestroy.com used to be a store who sold such items as, "Shut That Bitch Up Duct Tape" and "Hide That Body Quick Broom Closets"

  4. Evil Realtor by Alien54 · · Score: 4, Informative
    They also own Evil Realtor.com

    This compares with the 20th Century castles site, which also has this item that would make a good lair.

    and which is a real item

    --
    "It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
  5. Where's the children's section? by GeorgeTheNorge · · Score: 3, Funny

    I was hoping to order an Emporer Zurg action figure.

    --
    If you got a $100 bill, put your hands up...
  6. damn slashdotting by MrSloth · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Ok, maybe slashdot shoulf offer to lend people bandwidth if they link them. Seems like it only takes moments for a small page to go down.

  7. Ok, they've got by sconeu · · Score: 5, Funny

    the "convenient, accessible self-destruct device". But do they have the murder device with the "unnecessarily slow dipping mechanism"?

    --
    General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
    1. Re:Ok, they've got by 56ker · · Score: 4, Funny

      You mean the big sharp blade that slowly moves down? The one where the evil genius says something along the lines of "I have you now - and in five minutes time the rope will burn through releasing the swinging blade which will cut you in half. I'd love to stay and watch - but unfortunately me and my henchmen have to go and watch the football! :o)"

    2. Re:Ok, they've got by Uart · · Score: 4, Funny

      And all I wanted was some sharks with friggin' lasers....

      --

      Opinionated Law Student Strikes Again!
  8. but I thought.... by skydude_20 · · Score: 3, Funny

    and my first thought was the next version of Windows was released

    --
    Jesus saves souls and redeems them for valuable cash prizes
  9. Argh! by URoRRuRRR · · Score: 2, Funny

    This reallly got my hopes up, I was expecting like a spy gadget store. Then I get a disclaimer that says it's owned partly by nazis and the carts are offline because 'heros' blew up their base.

    Is it April 1 again?

    --
    "Oh no, 3 horny women and only 2 condoms...Thank god I read slashdot"
  10. i just use frys... by spike666 · · Score: 2

    and / or home depot and wal mart.

    sometimes target, but usually they have too many nice things, so thats where i buy my gifts for friends.

  11. ...From the Footer by $carab · · Score: 5, Funny

    www.villainsupply.com is owned and operated by Global Domination LLC, a consortium of organizations devoted to the consolidation of global capital by a single cabal or individual. Member organizations include The Trilateral Commission, The Bilderberger Group, Alternative 3, The World Zionist Conspiracy, VilAnon, The International Union of Mad Scientists, Majestic-12, World Freemasonry, SMERSH/The Second Soviet, Switzerland, The Arctic Nazis, The Hellfire Club, Price/Waterhouse/Coopers, Sanrio, Archer/Daniels/Midland, Dr. DeSpayr, The U.S. Military-Industrial Complex, and Amway.

    I think they forgot the The great and sinister VA "Software" keiretsu.

    1. Re:...From the Footer by MulluskO · · Score: 2

      Treachery!
      This is slashdot, and the first company you noted missing from the list wasn't Microsoft!

      I'd rant more, but I've got to go get a net and get tomorrows breakfast.

      --

      Too busy staying alive... ~ R.A.
    2. Re:...From the Footer by dmarcov · · Score: 2

      Someone needs to update their footer -- it's not PWC (PriceWaterhouseCoopers), it's First Monday ... err .. no, that's a crappy Supreme Court show. Two Mondays from last week ... Monday, Next Monday, Last Monday ... nevermind. It was something silly from the minds that brought us "Accenture" -- although now in hindsight, losing the whole "Anderson" name seems pretty brilliant.

    3. Re:...From the Footer by red_dragon · · Score: 2

      I hate to do this, but I feel obligated to correct you. The actual name (plus slogan) is:

      MONDAY:
      WOKE
      UP
      MUCH
      TOO
      EARLY
      SAW
      NEW
      NAME
      WENT
      TO
      BED
      CRYING

      It's all right here.

      --
      In Soviet Russia, Jesus asks: "What Would You Do?"
  12. They may have a doomsday device... by salmo · · Score: 5, Funny

    but do they have a psychotic arm for my former nazi scientist?

  13. It looks like they built... by loucura! · · Score: 3, Funny

    That convenient self-destruct device into their webserver.

    --
    Black and grey are both shades of white.
  14. Needs Something... by muzzmac · · Score: 5, Funny

    Perhaps a pre-recorded evil laughing device.

    I find MUUUUAAAAHHAAAHHAAAAHAHAHAHA! can be very taxing on the voicebox after a few hours.

    "Evil laugh augmentation device. Pat Pend"

    1. Re:Needs Something... by Tablizer · · Score: 3, Funny

      (* Perhaps a pre-recorded evil laughing device. I find MUUUUAAAAHHAAAHHAAAAHAHAHAHA! can be very taxing on the voicebox after a few hours. *)

      So *thats* why my boss's voice is always horse. Figured it out finally.

  15. /. effect - on Friday night?!?! by tomdarch · · Score: 5, Funny

    We're a sorry bunch, but for a site to get /.ed at roughly midnight on a Friday night is pretty sad! I mean, I'm stuck at home running an animation rendering, so, um, I have an excuse. But what about the rest of you!

    1. Re:/. effect - on Friday night?!?! by Jucius+Maximus · · Score: 2
      "We're a sorry bunch, but for a site to get /.ed at roughly midnight on a Friday night is pretty sad!

      I mean, I'm stuck at home running an animation rendering, so, um, I have an excuse. But what about the rest of you!"

      This time there is an excuse ... it is only a short time until the next matches in World Cup Football / Soccer start so many people could be up reading slashdot until the game starts.

    2. Re:/. effect - on Friday night?!?! by spiro_killglance · · Score: 4, Funny

      Hey its saturday morning were I am. Been out to
      a club, got pissed, got pissed off by a mate
      snogging the girl i was chatting up. Dancing the
      manic disco dance of the extremely angry. Walked
      to the top of the hill and back, at home cooling
      off reading slashdot. And they say programmers have no life.

      Which reminds me, they need another section on there site, terminal over-reaction revenage devices.

      Al Corpone baseball bat. $50

      Magick Evil Explode a minion hand gesture, in
      case any ask a good question. $10,000,000

      Miniture Zarug battle fleet*. One thousand years
      old each ship the 1.5cm in length. Currently
      enaged in a holy war, the the Verhug captain that
      back what he said about is mother. $5,000,000.

      *garanatee void if used near small dogs.

  16. A Real Doomsday Device by borgasm · · Score: 4, Funny

    Come on, we all employ a doomsday device on a daily basis.

    It's called The Slashdot Effect.

  17. Scenario? by quantaman · · Score: 5, Funny

    Boss: Ahh, the time is at hand. We have but a few minutes while the satellites are perfectly alinged with the moon to form our Death Ray. Alert our forces and the send the fire command!!

    Henchman: Sir, we can't access the central server!

    Boss: What has happened? Did a government spy infiltrate us and take our the control room?

    Henchman: I don't think so sir...

    Boss: Was our facility taken over by a crack military team that has cut power to the mainframe?

    Henchman: Uhhh.. Not exactly

    Boss: Did a team of elite crackers break in at the last minute and upload a virus?

    Henchman: Closer...

    Boss: Well what is it?

    Henchman: It's the slashdot effect! All our communications have ground to a halt, our enviromental controls are turning our headquarters into an inferno and our satellites are going to crash into our island!

    Boss: Arrghh!! Foiled Again! Escape to our nuclear submarine!

    Henchman: Um sir.. remember a few months ago how you wanted us to installed Windows on the sub...

    BOOM!!!

    --
    I stole this Sig
    1. Re:Scenario? by Jucius+Maximus · · Score: 5, Funny
      "Henchman: Um sir.. remember a few months ago how you wanted us to installed Windows on the sub...

      BOOM!!!"

      Would that be the operating system to control the sub's computer systems or the transparent sides used for viewing the ocean that would implode at sufficient depth?

      I guess either way it does not matter ...

  18. Damn! by nochops · · Score: 2

    Somebody tripped the self-destructo on their website!

    Whoops!!!

    --
    "A terrorist is someone who has a bomb but doesn't have an air force." -William Blum
  19. sounds good by zephc · · Score: 3, Funny

    But i want an Adrian Barbeaubot

    --
    "I would say that 99 per cent of what my father has written about his own life is false." - L. Ron Hubbard Jr.
  20. by the way, kuro5hin raised over 30,000 dollars by turm5ric · · Score: 2, Informative

    that is stuff that matters

  21. another site - gunsforkids.com by simetra · · Score: 2, Funny

    This one is nice too.

    --

    "Would it kill you to put down the toilet seat?" -- Maya Angelou
  22. Ultimate Evil by JanusFury · · Score: 2

    Where's the 'instant slashdotting'? That's the ultimate in evil. Oh wait, they got hit by it themselves...

    --
    using namespace slashdot;
    troll::post();
  23. Not truly evil. by Oily+Tuna · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The super-villian is not 100% evil, he's got the brains to make all these amazing world-destroying devices, powerful computers, wonderful transportation devices.

    The 100% evil people are the ones who haven't quite got the brains. They make crappy computers, pathic transportation devices, not quite soul-destroying robots and then, and this is the evil bit, they persuade us to turn over our hard-earned cash and use them on ourselves :-(

    --
    Mmmmmmm ... sushi.
  24. Pfft! by dkoyanagi · · Score: 2

    What kind of an "evil supplies" store doesn't sell weather machines or germ warfare labs? You'd think they'd at least stock business hammocks.

  25. Re:Evil? by qqtortqq · · Score: 2, Funny

    Once I get it going, I'm going to GPL my efforts so all can have it! Just imagine: /. will contain nothing but Karma-bots and stupid Macintosh users who argue with them.

    And this is different from the present in what way?

  26. A real lair by Animats · · Score: 4, Interesting
    A friend of mine, after cashing out of his startup, acquired a secret R&D lab in a remote farming village in Switzerland. The place is equipped with reinforced concrete walls, a bomb shelter, a freight elevator, an overhead crane, a private power substation, and a server farm. Plus there's a mansion-sized house with an indoor swimming pool.

    What really gets me is that he paid less for the place than a typical house where I live, in Silicon Valley.

    1. Re:A real lair by RKloti · · Score: 2, Informative

      OT: Bomb shelters are actually quite common in Switzerland. In fact, building and zoning regulations require that there are enough bomb shelters, either public or private, to house a large section of the population.

      Largely a relic of the cold war, but could come in handy if there is ever some kind of major disaster, such as a damn burst (Grand Dixence, Switzerland's highest damn, is at 284 metres high the third tallest dam in the world and the tallest dam in Europe), nuclear meltdown/explosion (there are 6 operating nuclear reactors in Switzerland, 3 of them are PWRs, the other, newer ones are EWRs, there have never been any serious incidents, but it is good to be prepared... and the parliament just decided not to shut down the existing reactors, like Germany is planning to), avalanche or mudslide or a chemical plant explosion (chemicals, esp. pharmaceuticals are one of Switzerland's largest industries, even more so than banking).

  27. That sites priceless. by spiro_killglance · · Score: 3, Informative


    I love the humour there. I think it must have been make by Brits, as some of the pictures are
    from 70s brit sci-fi that americans probably
    wouldn't get. Did you spot, Kerr Avon, Zoltan and
    the federation guard uniform from Blakes seven and
    the Giant robot from Doctor who?

    1. Re:That sites priceless. by DarkZero · · Score: 2

      I spotted none of that, but I did spot Char's Zaku II from the old Japanese sci-fi anime TV show "Mobile Suit Gundam". So maybe these guys are just an international coalition of evil nerds.

      And yes, I unfortunately launched all adjectives for great confusion in that first sentence, but I couldn't figure out a better way to fit it all in.

    2. Re:That sites priceless. by tb3 · · Score: 2

      It's definitely british. Under Heavy Arms, they've got an SPV!

      --

      www.lucernesys.comHorizon: Calendar-based personal finance

  28. Where are the... by LtScheisskopf · · Score: 2, Funny

    "You know, I have one simple request. And that is to have sharks with freakin laser beams attached to thier heads. Now evidently my cycloptic colleague informs me that that can't be done."

  29. No, no, no! by gusnz · · Score: 4, Informative

    "Unnecessarily slow dripping mechanisms"? Bah!

    Every serious Evil Overlord has long ago forsaken them in favour of things much more practical.

    Plus, not only will your World Domination plans be more effective, they'll be cheaper too.

    :)

    1. Re:No, no, no! by asobala · · Score: 3, Funny

      From eviloverlord.com:

      "My main computers will have their own special operating system that will be completely incompatible with standard IBM and Macintosh powerbooks."

      My college has that one.

  30. Am I evil or not? by Fiver-rah · · Score: 5, Funny
    My favorite bit is AmIEvilOrNot.com (strangely not found at amievilornot.com).

    The top 4 most evil people they have listed:

    1. Adolf Hitler (69.4 % think he's pure evil)
    2. Osama Bin Laden (55.1 %)
    3. Bill Gates (51.5)
    4. John Ashcroft (45.6)
    --
    Read Bujold. Free (as in
  31. Evil People, rejoice... by taernim · · Score: 2, Funny

    In a related link, check out Evil People... Supplying you with all your Evil connections.

    He uses a lot of Flash and Shockwave too... I guess people who say Flash is the devil are right! :P

    --
    "PC Load Letter? What the $@#% does that mean?!"
  32. Improved Evil Kit by Animats · · Score: 5, Funny
    Unlike Villain Supply, everything here can be ordered.
    • TKsolver. $399. The spreadsheet for crooked accountants. Allows you to change the totals and have the other numbers adjusted to fit.
    • DestroyIt 5009 CC High Capacity Shredder. $25,999. Gets rid of all those incriminating documents fast. Nixon, Ollie North, and Enron all got into trouble because of inadequate shredder capacity. Don't let this happen to you. Requires 80-amp outlet.
    • Offshore dummy company in Vanatu $1995. Escape taxes. Do secret arms deals. Pay bribes. Order online through "ultra-secure website" which uses regular HTTP.
    • Armored Mercedes-Benz 600 SEL $69,900. Level V armor. Laugh at wannabe hijackers with AK-47s.
    • Vault Door with time lock $7000. Standard bank equipment. Installation extra.
  33. And don't miss General Zod's Web Site by mdubinko · · Score: 2, Funny

    Zod knew that his rightful place on this planet Houston (known to some as "Earth"), was to be ruler. Zod eventually made his way back to Superman's Crystal Palace and was able to restore his own super powers. And now that Superman is in a wheelchair (which Zod swears he had NOTHING to do with), there is no longer anyone on this planet left to oppose him.

    So Zod is now assuming his position as your rightful leader.
    You have two choices:

    1. Take his hand and swear eternal loyalty to Zod.
    2. Perish for your defiance.

    The choice is obvious. KNEEL BEFORE ZOD. Truth. Justice. Zod.

    http://www.generalzod.net/

    --
    --- Learn XForms today: http://xformsinstitute.com
  34. Site is lacking... by DA_MAN_DA_MYTH · · Score: 2

    A pet store where you can buy some frickin' sharks with lasers on their forehead. Or at least some ill tempered bass with the lasers. Or a clone 1/8th your size.

    --
    "It takes many nails to build a crib, but one screw to fill it."
  35. Homo take over plans by type40 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Those silly gooses! There the ones that we (Gay/Lesbian world domiation & SM club) bought our HomoRay8000a from. It's your standard MindRay6000 with a 12 inch purple control rod crystal inplace of the standard 5 inch. Once that cute guy (the one with the yumy blue eyes) gets done hooking it up, and we finish testing it (on him) we'll be able to make every man in the world "change teams".
    Yes, every police man (clad only in leather jock strap, gun belt, and motorcyle boots) will give and recive head at all traffic stops. Football will be played as it was ment, nude. The Marine Corp. will be filled with screaming bottoms, oh right, it already is.
    Of couse it would happen so much faster if the Jews would sell us their mind control satalite network. Of all the nerve! they won't sell it out right, they want us to lease it form them.

    --
    "You can see I know very little about pimp policy." George McGovern.
  36. The man just can't help himself by MadFarmAnimalz · · Score: 2

    Saint Aardvark writes "I just came across VillainSupply.com, and I'm sold.

    Robotic Tiger pricetag: $1.2 billion, batteries not included.

    You're sold? *scratches head*

    Bill, you're not welcome on slashdot. We don't even like your operating system.

    Shoo.

    --
    Blearf. Blearf, I say.
  37. Re:1,2,4 aren't pure evil. by foniksonik · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Nope for me it's the people with ideology who are evil... manipulating bastards, they claim 'trying to make the world better by doing stuff' but really they're just fscking with us and keeping anyone from doing good stuff by taxing our time and resources.

    Destroying for the fun of it is a minor hobby that is easily countered by societal pressure or just plain ol' time... ideology seems to survive much longer than it is valid.

    --
    A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.
  38. BEWARE!! Customer Support is TERRIBLE!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    They REFUSED to give me a refund on a defective doomsday device!!!!!

  39. The former pump factory ... by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 2

    I think I know the friend in question. B-)

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  40. Deal on antimatter by davidc · · Score: 2, Funny

    I see they have antimatter at $450,000,000.00 per liter. Such a deal! And only 12 liters could destroy the entire planet!
    Maybe I can afford a microliter or so and use it to power a really powerful potato gun?

    1. Re:Deal on antimatter by belg4mit · · Score: 2, Informative

      Heh, Coulomb's law aside, protons are far denser
      than a gram per milliliter.

      The volume of a proton is roughly 2.7E-46 m3.
      A ml is 1cm3 or 1E-6 m3.

      So 5.95E15 mol protons / ml.

      1 ml of water is 1 gram, that's 1/18 of a mol H2O.

      1 gram of protons is 1 mol of protons.
      The Earth's mass is 6E27 g.
      1 billion liters, or about 500 swimming pools
      of protons.

      --
      Were that I say, pancakes?
  41. Out of stock! by sg3000 · · Score: 3, Funny
    For months, I've been trying to order the ROBOTIC AYN RAND (halfway down on the Misc Evil page):

    Need advice about your latest megalomaniacal scheme? If only you could ask history's greatest megalomaniac, "novelist" and "philosopher" Ayn Rand. Too bad she's dead. But wait! In 1963, a secret cabal of Objectivists intent on taking over the Student Union at MIT built the first robotic Ayn Rand, and now you can own a Randroid® based on their original design. Comes with stock phrases such as "Morality ends where the gun begins," "Pity for the guilty is treason to the innocent," and "Nathaniel! Bring me another gin and tonic!"

    Price: US$50,000 includes software*
    *software tends to be rather buggy. For instance, your Randroid may oppose immigration, yet be an immigrant herself. She may oppose infidelity, yet cheat on her husband. She may espouse individuality, yet believe that only those who follow her are individuals. She may oppose the control of individuals by organizations, yet laud corporate power. These bugs can not be repaired.


    Every time I make an order, they say they're out of stock. Apparently some guy in Redmond, WA has cleared out their stock!
    --
    Insert simplistic political, ideological, or personal proselytization here.
    1. Re:Out of stock! by geekoid · · Score: 2

      "ROBOTIC AYN RAND"
      You can tall the difference from ayn rand, how exactly?

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  42. read the fine print about the robotic tigers by Afrosheen · · Score: 4, Funny

    "****requires two specially-trained gay German technicians"

    Any poke at Sigfried and Roy gets 5 stars in my book :)

    1. Re:read the fine print about the robotic tigers by speaker4thedead · · Score: 2, Funny

      Dude, don't go around poking Sigfried and Roy... You don't know where they've been.

      --
      "My religion is to live --and die-- without regret." -- Milarepa
  43. Re:It was funny until ... by BreakWindows · · Score: 2

    It shot down Objectivism, but Ayn Rand's major goal of it was that "altruism robs a man's soul" and "if you want something, take it". So yes, I believe it is a good thing to not have 'psychopaths' living for themselves, despising the concept of helping others and just running around taking what is 'theirs'.

    Just my opinion.

  44. Ok, now that you're evil... by grunby · · Score: 3, Informative


    You mustn't forget The Top 100 Things I'd Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord.

    Things like number 50: My main computers will have their own special operating system that will be completely incompatible with standard IBM and Macintosh powerbooks.

    - grunby

  45. DEATH TO FANATICS!! by Xtifr · · Score: 2

    Nope for me it's the people with ideology who are evil...

    Indeed, that's the basis for my ideology. I firmly believe that all those people who firmly believe that certain people should be killed should be killed.

    Anyway, #3 on the list (BG) also has an ideology: the pursuit of more money is the highest good.

  46. You misunderstand and misrepresent Rand by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 2
    Ayn Rand's major goal of it was that "altruism robs a man's soul" and "if you want something, take it".

    You misunderstand and misrepresent Rand's philosophy. You are welcome to to chose to despise what it actually is. But it is a mistake to believe a lie about it, then despise what you believe it to be.

    "Altruism robs a man's soul" is an accurate description of part of it. But she goes on to describe in excruciating detail exactly HOW altruism robs a man's (or woman's) soul, reducing them to poverty and misery. You may not agree with her. But her analysis had the Soviet Union pegged dead-on, and described the form of its eventual collapse when it was still in its infancy. It also accurately described the "cycle of poverty" and "political correctness" when the socialist experiments of the west were just beginning.

    On the other hand, claiming she advocated "If you want something, take it" is a flat-out lie. What she actually advocated is "If you want something that belongs to someone else, you may NOT just take it. To get it you must get him to trade it to you voluntarily, without using force, lies, or threats."

    So yes, I believe it is a good thing to not have 'psychopaths' living for themselves, despising the concept of helping others and just running around taking what is 'theirs'.

    I, on the other hand, believe it is good to have them:

    making things of value,

    advertising them honestly,

    selling them to interested buyers,

    honoring contracts, and

    settling disputes through arbratation or the legal system

    and bad to have them:

    robbing,

    killing,

    raping,

    bashing all who "dis" them, and

    doing anything else that gives them a moment of satisfaction.

    Rand's philosoply gives them a believable argument that the former will make them happier.

    Since the defining characteristic of a psychopath is that he IS totally selfish, don't you think a philosophy that tells him "a smart selfish person will be honest and hard working because it will make him happy" is a desirable thing?

    . . . . .

    And as I expected, my previous post was moderated down. Does anyone honestly believe that occurred because it really didn't rate, and not because some leftists will use moderator points to bash any posting that calls attention to left-wing political bias or propaganda?

    Let's see how this posting does. B-)

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
    1. Re:You misunderstand and misrepresent Rand by BreakWindows · · Score: 2

      And as I expected, my previous post was moderated down. Does anyone honestly believe that occurred because it really didn't rate, and not because some leftists will use moderator points to bash any posting that calls attention to left-wing political bias or propaganda?

      You almost had a point until you cried conspiracy just because people disagree with you, especially since your original post was just screaming "left wing radicals" at a joke website and really had no merit and contributed nothing to the discussion. How is a rant about the damn leftists who run that website differant than the trolls complaining about "the Jews who run Hollywood", in a movie review? Very typical Ayn Rand fan ;)

      But, since you made an intelligent reply I respect your opinion, though I do disagree with a basic point of it. When dealing with a "psycho", it is not advisable to get them to continue on their same selfish path, with a financial goal. For years, the practice has been to get them to value more than just material and primal needs...convince them life has value, spirituality or religion or just seeing the big picture of life are more important, we're all gentle and unique snowflakes, blahblahblah.

      Say what you will about Objectivism, but it has never been the goal of any intelligent psychiatrist to promote the construction of maniacal tendencies into financial pursuits...it has always led to the complete opposite of Objectivism, where materialism and strictly work-related goals are supposed to consume, and more towards concentrating on figuring out who they are and what they want as an individual. Objectivism assumes everyone wants the same thing; that's the last thing you want to tell a guy at the end of his rope.

    2. Re:You misunderstand and misrepresent Rand by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 2
      When dealing with a "psycho", it is not advisable to get them to continue on their same selfish path, with a financial goal.

      But the point of teaching Objectivism to psychopaths is not to get them to switch to financial goals. Many psychopaths already have financial goals. We call them things like "burglar", "mugger", "con-man", "white-collar criminal", and the like.

      The point is teaching them ENLIGHTENED self-interest. "Yes, that young lady you picked up in the bar would be fun for a night. But you have a nice wife who is fun, too, and she's about ready to leave you because you pick up girls like that. Would you rather have fun for one night with the girl from the bar, or have fun with your wife for years?" The same applies to crime-versus-job, lie-versus-truth, etc.

      Often it's a tough sell - psychopaths are not noted for impulse control. But once they learn that there's more in it for them by being solid citizens than by being crooks they can become some of the solidest citizens there are.

      For years, the practice has been to get them to value more than just material and primal needs...convince them life has value, spirituality or religion or just seeing the big picture of life are more important, we're all gentle and unique snowflakes, blahblahblah.

      And THAT doesn't work worth a damn. They look out for number one, and will ALWAYS look out for number one. The trick is to show them how it's good for number one to look out for numbers two-through-five-billion.

      Which do you think will be more successful at converting crooks into good citizens: A philosophy that requires them to first become unselfish, sacrificing themselves for the benefit of others? Or one that lets their selfishness motivate win-for-everybody "good" behavior?

      Say what you will about Objectivism, but it has never been the goal of any intelligent psychiatrist to promote the construction of maniacal tendencies into financial pursuits...

      Now you're back to the lie the left-wing told you about what constitutes Objectivism.

      But in fact there HAS been a project to teach Objectivism to convicts - in the Canadian prison system. It is one of the few things that actually works.

      A psychopath can become socialized if he learns a ruleset that lets him get along, and many of them learn such rulesets early and never do end up living a life of crime. But when you have one who has already learned some crime techniques that provide a short-term payoff for breaking one set of rules, it's a hard sell to convince him that following an even tighter set of rules will give him a bigger long-term payoff. But there are several ways that it does work.

      Religion has sometimes been successful to a limited extent. Some Christian variants have had occasional success. (But psychopaths in Christian countries are usually already familiar with it and are very good at faking a conversion in the hope of easier treatment.) Islam has been even more effective. (It comes with a strong support group and major social pressure to remain lawful.)

      But religions usually ask for self-sacrifice up front and promise payoff mainly after death. That's a long time for most psychopaths to wait. Objectivism promises a payoff here-and-now, by understandable means, and delivers well enough even in the short term that it can be easily checked. This probably explains its success.

      Objectivism assumes everyone wants the same thing; that's the last thing you want to tell a guy at the end of his rope.

      No, Objectivism assumes that everybody wants something, but different people want different things. It recognizes and encourages those differences, with its emphasis on the individual. It suggests that each individual attempt to advance himself and achieve his own personal goals, within the constraint of not harming others (except in legitimate self-defense). And it recognizes that the person with the best information and strongest incentive for deciding what's good or bad for a person is the person himself. So it rejects involuntary impositions even "for your own good".

      Now many of a typical person's motivations are financial. "I've been rich, and I've been poor. Rich is better." Prosperity may be a goal in itself. But even when it isn't, it provides resources to pursue other goals. Objectivism recognizes rights to private property, voluntary trade with no outside interference by disinterested parties, and pursuit of happiness. And it explicitly rejects both mysticism and placing the welfare of a group over that of its component individuals. So it's easy to misrepresent Objectivism as a purely financial philosophy - then once that's been put over, go on to claiming it's "success at any cost", "if you want it, take it", trash-the-environment, and so on.

      But in fact, "If you want it, take it." is actually characteristic of the left wing, and the biggest difference between it and Objectivism. "From each according to his abilities...", "If it feels good, do it!", "Liberation" as a synonym for theft, and "Property is Theft" are catchphraises of the left, whose core ideology includes self-gratification regardless of consequences and the denial of the right to property. Objectivism is more "If you own it keep it - until YOU decide to trade it for something you like better." and "Be sure you're right, then go ahead.". And it recognizes "Never start a fight. Always finish it." as a valid strategy.

      But I'm getting WAY deep into describing it, and since I'm NOT an Objectivist I'm not the one to do it.

      The point is that to reform a psychopath you must convince him that following some socially-acceptable set of rules is good for him. Objectivism is a socially-acceptable set of rules that promises (and delivers) a better life for those who follow it than for those who live a life of crime, and which is internally consistent, understandable, and testable. So letting a criminal psychopath learn it is an effective way to enable his reform.

      . . . .

      And as I expected, my previous post was moderated down. Does anyone honestly believe that occurred because it really didn't rate, and not because some leftists will use moderator points to bash any posting that calls attention to left-wing political bias or propaganda?

      You almost had a point until you cried conspiracy just because people disagree with you, especially since your original post was just screaming "left wing radicals" at a joke website and really had no merit and contributed nothing to the discussion.

      Actually, I didn't cry "conspiracy". I merely pointed out that some left-wingers are willing to moderate on the basis of ideology rather than discussion interest. The moderation system is supposed to bring attention to the active discussion points and winnow the redundant, flaming, or off-topic chatter.

      How is a rant about the damn leftists who run that website differant than the trolls complaining about "the Jews who run Hollywood", in a movie review?

      It's relevant because it was pointing out that the site's humor included jokes with a consistent political bias, and would thus be painfully un-funny to people of a different leaning, degrading their enjoyment of the site. (And also because the pokes at Rand might actually do some real harm, by undermining a rehabilitation program.)

      Minimally, people of a more conservative or libertarian bent would be forwarned. Ideally the site's operators would see the posting and (if that wasn't their intent), balance the site by including some left-wing "vilians" along with those based on the left-wing's enimies list.

      There are plenty to chose from. Most of the domestic acts of political terrorism in the last half-century or more have been perpetrated by the left wing, rather than the right. (I could go into cases, or reasons for the discrepancy. But this is already too long.)

      Being an "equal-opportunity lampooner" would remove the readers' "I'm being propagandized" thorn-in-the-brain, allowing people other than leftist politics to enjoy the site. Even the portions lampooning their own would become enjoyable, once they appeared to be only poking fun at individual misbehavior rather than striking blows in a serious political struggle.

      If the next "villian of the month" is, say:

      the Unibomber,

      an animal-rightist (disrupting medical research or [more in the site's style] trying to enslave the world by raising a generation of retarded children through protien deficiency),

      a save-the-earth type (maiming and killing working-class lumber workers with spiked trees while living in a redwood lair, or locking up a resource in don't-mine federal parks, while buying up the other sources outside the US to make a bundle),

      Gray Davis (the flip side of Enron's CEO, lining his campaign coffers for the next election in his climb to world domination by setting up the fake "deregulation", Graying-out California, soaking the citizens and non-energy businesses, and bankrupting PG&E),

      Any of several womanizing Democratic politicians (love 'em, leave 'em, maybe kill 'em if they become inconvenient, trash their reps if it comes to light or start a war to distract the press, with minnions in the Feminist movement sacking women's rights to defend their leader)

      or something along that line, I'll know they're in it for the fun rather than the politics.

      Meanwhile, my original post led directly to the conversation on Objectivism-to-reform-crooks and indirectly to propaganda-or-humor. Would you say that either is irrelevant chaff?

      --
      Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
    3. Re:You misunderstand and misrepresent Rand by geekoid · · Score: 2

      of course, she said nothing unique or new.

      Oh, and saing a government will collapse, is obvious, not insightfull. ALL government collapse sooner or latter. They way the USA was set up, may have made it the exception, however, since we now have less flexibility then ever, it too, will succomb. probably in our life time.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  47. Captain Electro might shop there... by canadian_right · · Score: 2

    Ok, you buy neat toys there, but where are you going to go for practical advice when you want to enslave the world? Captain Electro is sharing his wizdom at The Electro Archive"

    --
    Anarchists never rule
  48. sorry to reply twice, but. by geekoid · · Score: 2

    You just solved one of the biggest mysteries od our time.
    I always look at windows, wonder "Why would they move where something goes, Why does half the self seem contradictory and not make sense?, Why would they change what something is called, when everybody knows it by the old name?"
    Its because Ayn Rand is there specifications writer!

    Also interisting, when we live in a world where windows are for looking at, not out.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect