He's making a distinction between "saying mean stuff" and defamation. Defamation, being a crime, doesn't apply often to criticism of public officials (hence being the case in free countries). I agree with other posters that it is simply much harder to reach the point of defamation.
I heard that theory when someone from the DoD gave a talk at Argonne National Lab when I was an intern there (the point being he was talking to mostly PhDs, not selling propaganda to the general public). As explained, the concern is countries who have tensions with neighbors, not our major 1st world allies who are generally secure. I don't know our diplomatic relations well enough to try to list what countries that would be, but if you can see America defending them in the event they were invaded, they are probably on the list. (Maybe you still don't agree, I just wanted to clarify the argument).
I make no claims we do a good job at playing world police. I wish we gave the EU some real say over our military to dilute our occasional (frequent?) stupidity.
I know the DoD argues that our nuclear stockpile helps prevent proliferation: our allies feel secure with our protection, so they don't start nuclear programs. If they did start such programs, their neighbors (who may not be allies) would feel compelled to get nuclear programs of their own. How many nukes we need to maintain this stability, and how bad the proliferation would be when we go too low- those points are up for debate. I do think the argument has merit to it.
Along the same lines, our foreign bases may have some use as a substitute for other countries expanding their own militaries, which would reduce neighboring military sizes.
I don't mean to justify our excessive military spending, but I do feel it is justified to have some spending that has no direct benefit to our citizens.
Why can't Congress just have an overall science budget? DOE, NASA, etc. can then figure out how to divide it up, independent of what the politicians think. Otherwise politicians compare astronauts playing golf on the moon against healthcare or their latest pork project (culminating in a celebratory round of golf). NASA should just have to compete against other science efforts.
This not only would insulate NASA somewhat from political agendas, but it would help keep NASA missions to a high standard. Missions with little scientific or technical benefit wouldn't be able to earn funding over more promising research in other fields.
You don't have to be old to hit the wrong pedal or respond poorly to a sticking pedal- you would expect some younger drivers mixed in there. This would imply the age trend has other causes (although age-related deterioration of driving skills can still be a factor).
I would be interested if someone better informed could clarify, but I am assuming there are important differences in lighting-proofing something and protecting it against large induced currents. I don't doubt there is a lot of overlap, though.
Given current geography knowledge, I don't think students need to learn the provinces of Canada right now. They can't find all 50 states of their own country on a map or label a few dozen countries. In high school we had to find recent news articles about non-US countries, and the teacher asked people to find the country on the map. The teacher had to help students find Iraq, and even help one student find Russia. This was in one of the better public school districts in the country, so I have no idea how depressing the national average student is.
I've heard claims that some schools in the south don't actually teach students who won the civil war. Given how distorted these textbooks are getting, it (sadly) sounds plausible. Anyone know for sure?
I should hope we have some ability to mitigate damage by disconnecting or shutting off equipment and using shielding, but even just knowing what will be destroyed and when can be useful. If there is reason to believe, for example, the computers in cars would get fried and make cars unusable, it would be good to know that before the highway at rush hour becomes a 5 mile long parking lot. Kind of like how better tornado detection doesn't do much to reduce property damage, but has greatly reduced fatalities.
I bet there are thousands of guys out there scared to death that someone will find out they rented Twilight (for the girlfriend, honest!). I'd rather be known as a lawyer-happy jerk than a Twilight fan.
Without any media, people are in fact freer to form their own opinions rather than having opinions supplied to them.
If they have no media access, what are they forming opinions about? If you don't need the media to form an opinion on it, censored media isn't going to have much impact. Sure, if you haven't thought about it you might buy the government's suggestion, but at least you are no longer 100% complacent about the issue. Patriots can turn revolutionaries if you can get them to see the lies of the government, but if everyone is apathetic you'll never get anywhere.
I'm sure a good part of it has to do with 3 being my first Civ game, so I'm most used to it. I prefer to play on a large map, full game of AI and leave conquest as the only victory option (though sometimes leaving Domination on so I don't have to slowly mop up at the end). Combat was more simple in Civ3- now you upgrade your units and it gives you the odds, which forces me to try and optimize and adds more hassle. I do find the odds helpful, but only because of all of the bonuses that would be too hard to follow otherwise. For example, I didn't like Oblivion due to the leveling system encouraging grinding if you wanted to optimize your stats (the skills you improved change how much you can improve your stats, and too few or too many skill improvements can hurt you). I like some complexity to keep things interesting, but sometimes it's nice to be able to just throw anything with a green health bar at the enemy city.
+1 parent has a good taste in music (Scenes is my favorite album).
Searching for the "concept album" tag on last.fm will give lots of results. Find an artist you like, there is a good chance you will appreciate the whole album (better than most other albums at least). Most are progressive rock or metal, so this isn't a solution for everyone.
Might not be too bad- once the doctors in India are too busy with these virtual visits, they'll have to hire the unemployed American doctors to diagnose x-rays and whatnot.
I've only played Civs 3 and 4 (civ 4 is nice for a change, but 3 is better), but I know in Civ3 there is an accelerated production option which lets you finish the tech tree before 1300 AD on a large, full game. You can make a map and remove the 4-turn minimum, which would probably allow you to start nuking by 1000 AD if you lead in GNP.
I'm at an engineering school where all students are required to get a laptop to help with classes where technical software is needed. If someone has their laptop out when it isn't necessary, they are using as a distraction. There may be some note-takers, but I have yet to see one. The problem is that people playing games distract those who see their screens, too. I have to agree with these professors.
Medical treatment that skirts federal regulations? Sounds like a lawyer's wet dream. Stem cell treatment has great potential, but they better tread carefully.
He's right you know. Those computers were the size of rooms. As demand went beyond 5, they started dividing those computers up into smaller ones. Ever wonder why computers are always getting smaller? They are running out of those 5 original computers, so they have to go smaller and smaller in order to stretch them further.
Slashdot Mirror
But what's the point in reading the summary if the headline is more accurate and informative than it?
You got "airstrike" from the last sentence, but missed "intentions 'to reveal Pentagon murder-coverup at US National Press Club, Apr 5, 9am"?
Senator 1: "Isn't there some saying about putting all your eggs in one basket?"
Senator 2: "Hey! Good idea!"
He's making a distinction between "saying mean stuff" and defamation. Defamation, being a crime, doesn't apply often to criticism of public officials (hence being the case in free countries). I agree with other posters that it is simply much harder to reach the point of defamation.
I heard that theory when someone from the DoD gave a talk at Argonne National Lab when I was an intern there (the point being he was talking to mostly PhDs, not selling propaganda to the general public). As explained, the concern is countries who have tensions with neighbors, not our major 1st world allies who are generally secure. I don't know our diplomatic relations well enough to try to list what countries that would be, but if you can see America defending them in the event they were invaded, they are probably on the list. (Maybe you still don't agree, I just wanted to clarify the argument).
I make no claims we do a good job at playing world police. I wish we gave the EU some real say over our military to dilute our occasional (frequent?) stupidity.
I know the DoD argues that our nuclear stockpile helps prevent proliferation: our allies feel secure with our protection, so they don't start nuclear programs. If they did start such programs, their neighbors (who may not be allies) would feel compelled to get nuclear programs of their own. How many nukes we need to maintain this stability, and how bad the proliferation would be when we go too low- those points are up for debate. I do think the argument has merit to it.
Along the same lines, our foreign bases may have some use as a substitute for other countries expanding their own militaries, which would reduce neighboring military sizes.
I don't mean to justify our excessive military spending, but I do feel it is justified to have some spending that has no direct benefit to our citizens.
Why can't Congress just have an overall science budget? DOE, NASA, etc. can then figure out how to divide it up, independent of what the politicians think. Otherwise politicians compare astronauts playing golf on the moon against healthcare or their latest pork project (culminating in a celebratory round of golf). NASA should just have to compete against other science efforts.
This not only would insulate NASA somewhat from political agendas, but it would help keep NASA missions to a high standard. Missions with little scientific or technical benefit wouldn't be able to earn funding over more promising research in other fields.
Just put a caps lock key in your ear. It should make all text seem louder.
You don't have to be old to hit the wrong pedal or respond poorly to a sticking pedal- you would expect some younger drivers mixed in there. This would imply the age trend has other causes (although age-related deterioration of driving skills can still be a factor).
Depending where they are, loan sharks may be a big problem.
I would be interested if someone better informed could clarify, but I am assuming there are important differences in lighting-proofing something and protecting it against large induced currents. I don't doubt there is a lot of overlap, though.
Global warming melts ice. Quick, run your cars 24/7 and heat up the earth so we can melt those comets before they hit the ground* and do damage!
Given current geography knowledge, I don't think students need to learn the provinces of Canada right now. They can't find all 50 states of their own country on a map or label a few dozen countries. In high school we had to find recent news articles about non-US countries, and the teacher asked people to find the country on the map. The teacher had to help students find Iraq, and even help one student find Russia. This was in one of the better public school districts in the country, so I have no idea how depressing the national average student is.
I've heard claims that some schools in the south don't actually teach students who won the civil war. Given how distorted these textbooks are getting, it (sadly) sounds plausible. Anyone know for sure?
I should hope we have some ability to mitigate damage by disconnecting or shutting off equipment and using shielding, but even just knowing what will be destroyed and when can be useful. If there is reason to believe, for example, the computers in cars would get fried and make cars unusable, it would be good to know that before the highway at rush hour becomes a 5 mile long parking lot. Kind of like how better tornado detection doesn't do much to reduce property damage, but has greatly reduced fatalities.
I bet there are thousands of guys out there scared to death that someone will find out they rented Twilight (for the girlfriend, honest!). I'd rather be known as a lawyer-happy jerk than a Twilight fan.
Without any media, people are in fact freer to form their own opinions rather than having opinions supplied to them.
If they have no media access, what are they forming opinions about? If you don't need the media to form an opinion on it, censored media isn't going to have much impact. Sure, if you haven't thought about it you might buy the government's suggestion, but at least you are no longer 100% complacent about the issue. Patriots can turn revolutionaries if you can get them to see the lies of the government, but if everyone is apathetic you'll never get anywhere.
Good point. Just because all the idiots use Windows doesn't mean Windows causes one to be an idiot.
I'm sure a good part of it has to do with 3 being my first Civ game, so I'm most used to it. I prefer to play on a large map, full game of AI and leave conquest as the only victory option (though sometimes leaving Domination on so I don't have to slowly mop up at the end). Combat was more simple in Civ3- now you upgrade your units and it gives you the odds, which forces me to try and optimize and adds more hassle. I do find the odds helpful, but only because of all of the bonuses that would be too hard to follow otherwise. For example, I didn't like Oblivion due to the leveling system encouraging grinding if you wanted to optimize your stats (the skills you improved change how much you can improve your stats, and too few or too many skill improvements can hurt you). I like some complexity to keep things interesting, but sometimes it's nice to be able to just throw anything with a green health bar at the enemy city.
+1 parent has a good taste in music (Scenes is my favorite album).
Searching for the "concept album" tag on last.fm will give lots of results. Find an artist you like, there is a good chance you will appreciate the whole album (better than most other albums at least). Most are progressive rock or metal, so this isn't a solution for everyone.
Might not be too bad- once the doctors in India are too busy with these virtual visits, they'll have to hire the unemployed American doctors to diagnose x-rays and whatnot.
I've only played Civs 3 and 4 (civ 4 is nice for a change, but 3 is better), but I know in Civ3 there is an accelerated production option which lets you finish the tech tree before 1300 AD on a large, full game. You can make a map and remove the 4-turn minimum, which would probably allow you to start nuking by 1000 AD if you lead in GNP.
I'm at an engineering school where all students are required to get a laptop to help with classes where technical software is needed. If someone has their laptop out when it isn't necessary, they are using as a distraction. There may be some note-takers, but I have yet to see one. The problem is that people playing games distract those who see their screens, too. I have to agree with these professors.
Medical treatment that skirts federal regulations? Sounds like a lawyer's wet dream. Stem cell treatment has great potential, but they better tread carefully.
He's right you know. Those computers were the size of rooms. As demand went beyond 5, they started dividing those computers up into smaller ones. Ever wonder why computers are always getting smaller? They are running out of those 5 original computers, so they have to go smaller and smaller in order to stretch them further.