What about all the extra charges on my phone bill?
on
Stealth Inflation
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· Score: 2, Interesting
Like the "lifeline service fee" that gives free phone service to people who can't afford it... It's just another hidden tax.
There's also the "airport service fees" at airports.
And I love how, the few times I have been in the hospital, I end up getting 30 different bills from 30 different organizations and SELDOM does the whole thing get handled by insurance companies without my having to get involved.
What happens to people that are born days or even hours before the end of the world then?
As I understand it, those too young to have made a decision before their death are summarially accepted by Christ. So, while it sounds unjust on the surface, this is not a good "unfairness" attack on Christianity.
I have the same issues with organized religion now that you mention it. Everytime I find myself stuck in a church during mass (weddings for example) I feel like I'm in some kind of cult gathering where people are repeating words in a zombie-like trance.
Exactly the issues I had for 17 years as a catholic growing up... it was all meaningless to me. Now, more than 15 years later, I have started going to a less "ritualistic" church and am hearing a lot more than I did with the constant repitition of the same things over and over.
When you're willing to present any religious theory other than your own as a valid "theory"
Interesting that you assumed I believe in creationism. I never made a point either way.
I just made the point that I don't have big objections to my daughter being shown various contraversial ideas as long as she is not shown one as "the truth" and the rest as "wrong."
Continuing your philosophy, if it is incorrect to show two but not more, why is it correct to show only one? I don't think there's a "cut and dry" answer to issues like this because someone will always be left out and they always have a legitimite gripe.
(BTW, I never even said what it is that I prefer be taught in school as I think that's irrelevant)
Claiming that creationism should be taught in school would be like claiming that we should also teach the traditional model of the universe with crystal spheres and the sun orbiting the earth
Actually, we do teach that in schools -- at least they did when I was in school -- in the sense of "this is what people used to believe and this is how it was proved wrong."
At the same time, I don't think anyone has "proven" evolution and, therefore, I see nothing wrong with presenting both ideas in the proper light -- i.e. "Here's what creationists believe and here's what evolutionists think" and leave it to the kids to decide for themselves what to believe or think.
Of course, one is more appropriately mentioned in a science class and the other in a philosophy/theology class.
that, my friends, is why I have a PO Box and why I don't volunteer my real phone number
Ditto for me. Last thing I want is someone seeing an email from me, doing a "whois" on my domain and then showing up at my doorstep EITHER because he "really likes me" or because I "really got him pissed."
AFAIK, PO boxes are okay as long as you are reachable through them
I also got one from my ISP (Comcast). Apparently my roomie downloaded a "cracked" version (it showed up in a websearch) of a program that she wanted to try and installed it. It didn't work, but it pointed her to the RIGHT site and she downloaded the demo -- which did work. But a week later, we got a letter (snailmail) telling me that we are violating the DMCA and need to explain what we are doing about it -- it even contained the name of the program and the words "cracked version." Apparently the program "phones home" when it thinks it is a cracked version.
So much for them ever selling either of us... or anyone we know... that software!
If a marriage with a pre-nuptual agreement starts out with some expectation for failure and divorce, doesn't that seem to be a prediction rather than a contingency?
Exactly my thoughts. I always realized I would never marry someone with whom I would not be willing to sign a prenup, but nor would I marry someone who would "require" one.
IOW, either my unwillingness to trust him OR his unwillingness to trust me would both be unmistakable warning signs.
There was an Outer Limits episode called "Blank Slate" (synopsis: http://www.theouterlimits.com/episodes/season5/58. htm)
Basicly this guy has no memories and is carrying them around (in "injectable" form) in his pocket, but he can only take so much at a time (with intervals in between). So, as the show progresses, he finds out more and more who he is.
I forgot to mention warrants. Of course I know about them.
And I don't even know if I mind the fact that a warrant was issued in this case -- I might agree with it.
I just am a little concerned at the number of "Big Brother" issues that keep coming up and my only goal was to point out that the issue is not whether he "got what he deserved" or not, but rather, whether or not that evidence is a violation of privacy and if it should be admitted.
That may be true. But so would a murderer whose house was searched without his permission if that evidence were admitted.
Historically, our judicial system has been willing to allow guilty people to go free when their rights (especially privacy) have been violated as a mechanism to deter the law enforcement agencies from violating those rights.
And I, for one, happen to think that things should stay that way.
So, "he got what he deserved" is not the point... the ends do NOT always justify the means.
There may be some good natured fun had at the expense of Americans in the great white north, but people here don't grimace when you mention the US of A.
Unless, of course, they are traveling and someone calls them "Americans.":-)
I never understood how anybody liked EITHER of them (the eraser or the touchpad). I always prefered the mini-trackball. I had an NEC laptop in 1997 that had a trackball on the front and still wish I had a pointing device like that on a laptop. It was the only device that I felt I had any degree of precision with.
Correct... And someone elsewehre posted a REAL simple "vaccination" until you can upgrade your server/ssl. Since it gets in through apache and creates a "/tmp/.bugtraq.c" that it then uses gcc to compile, just execute the following commands as root:
#touch/tmp/.bugtraq #chmod 000/tmp/.bugtraq
That should make it impossible for it to create the executable -- and the presence of the.c will show you if it has attacked your system.
(Note: This is a preventitive measure of this specific worm. All someone would have to do is change the filenames that it uses to get around this, so fix it properly asap)
As a pilot also, I don't completely agree. If it's a VFR day, when planes can "see and avoid" each other, I agree. But if it's an IFR day, when lotsa people are in the clouds, a confused or malevolant controller could have two planes shooting the same approach at the same time. It's UNLIKELY, but quite possible.
Oh, just write it off as another blow to privacy. Won't be long before someone in the government knows where we are at all times and what we are doing.
First of all, innovation in the aviation field are VERY slow thanks to the liabilities involved. If someone introduces some new innovation and then a plane with that new device crashes, even if the pilot is drunk, the innovator gets sued. Almost ALWAYS happens and the innovater often loses with a multi-million dollar verdict. It's pretty easy to convince the non-pilot public that this new device/equipment was at fault.
Also, it just takes time to change such a system. Yes, they have planes that CAN fly themselves from start to finish (including take-off, landing and even taxi) but navigation is not the key role of controllers -- aircraft avoidance is.
A few more innovations need to be made in a system to allow aircraft to travel automatically AND avoid midairs. Not much has yet been done to automate that. It is only recently that the FAA has even required airlines to have the equipment to show the pilots directly where other planes are. Until just a few years ago, the controllers would tell the pilots where nearby aircraft were.
It'll still be a while before they couple this system to the autopilot and program it to find a path through the other aircraft. And that product will have serious potential liabilities should it ever make a "mistake".
WebVan just never chose to use that model. Their whole business plan depended on supplying the goods themselves. Peapod, OTOH, does exactly what you suggest -- buys from local supermarkets and delivers. If the business model you suggest is viable, they should be.
S'funny. I've been drawing that parallel also. When I mention him and people ask me who Tesla was, I often say "Well, let's use an analogy... When we look back at developing electrical generation and distribution, Edison was the Bill Gates and Tesla was the Linus Tolvalds."
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Like the "lifeline service fee" that gives free phone service to people who can't afford it... It's just another hidden tax.
There's also the "airport service fees" at airports.
And I love how, the few times I have been in the hospital, I end up getting 30 different bills from 30 different organizations and SELDOM does the whole thing get handled by insurance companies without my having to get involved.
What happens to people that are born days or even hours before the end of the world then?
As I understand it, those too young to have made a decision before their death are summarially accepted by Christ. So, while it sounds unjust on the surface, this is not a good "unfairness" attack on Christianity.
I have the same issues with organized religion now that you mention it. Everytime I find myself stuck in a church during mass (weddings for example) I feel like I'm in some kind of cult gathering where people are repeating words in a zombie-like trance.
Exactly the issues I had for 17 years as a catholic growing up... it was all meaningless to me. Now, more than 15 years later, I have started going to a less "ritualistic" church and am hearing a lot more than I did with the constant repitition of the same things over and over.
When you're willing to present any religious theory other than your own as a valid "theory"
Interesting that you assumed I believe in creationism. I never made a point either way.
I just made the point that I don't have big objections to my daughter being shown various contraversial ideas as long as she is not shown one as "the truth" and the rest as "wrong."
Continuing your philosophy, if it is incorrect to show two but not more, why is it correct to show only one? I don't think there's a "cut and dry" answer to issues like this because someone will always be left out and they always have a legitimite gripe.
(BTW, I never even said what it is that I prefer be taught in school as I think that's irrelevant)
Claiming that creationism should be taught in school would be like claiming that we should also teach the traditional model of the universe with crystal spheres and the sun orbiting the earth
Actually, we do teach that in schools -- at least they did when I was in school -- in the sense of "this is what people used to believe and this is how it was proved wrong."
At the same time, I don't think anyone has "proven" evolution and, therefore, I see nothing wrong with presenting both ideas in the proper light -- i.e. "Here's what creationists believe and here's what evolutionists think" and leave it to the kids to decide for themselves what to believe or think.
Of course, one is more appropriately mentioned in a science class and the other in a philosophy/theology class.
that, my friends, is why I have a PO Box and why I don't volunteer my real phone number
Ditto for me. Last thing I want is someone seeing an email from me, doing a "whois" on my domain and then showing up at my doorstep EITHER because he "really likes me" or because I "really got him pissed."
AFAIK, PO boxes are okay as long as you are reachable through them
I also got one from my ISP (Comcast). Apparently my roomie downloaded a "cracked" version (it showed up in a websearch) of a program that she wanted to try and installed it. It didn't work, but it pointed her to the RIGHT site and she downloaded the demo -- which did work. But a week later, we got a letter (snailmail) telling me that we are violating the DMCA and need to explain what we are doing about it -- it even contained the name of the program and the words "cracked version." Apparently the program "phones home" when it thinks it is a cracked version.
So much for them ever selling either of us... or anyone we know... that software!
I sure hope that the national list has a more effective mechanism for reporting offenders.
They, at least, include a phone number.
From http://www.donotcall.gov/FAQ/FAQConsumers.aspx
For more information, see the privacy policy. You may also call 1-888-382-1222 to submit a complaint; for TTY, call 1-866-290-4236
If a marriage with a pre-nuptual agreement starts out with some expectation for failure and divorce, doesn't that seem to be a prediction rather than a contingency?
Exactly my thoughts. I always realized I would never marry someone with whom I would not be willing to sign a prenup, but nor would I marry someone who would "require" one.
IOW, either my unwillingness to trust him OR his unwillingness to trust me would both be unmistakable warning signs.
There was an Outer Limits episode called "Blank Slate" (synopsis: http://www.theouterlimits.com/episodes/season5/58. htm)
Basicly this guy has no memories and is carrying them around (in "injectable" form) in his pocket, but he can only take so much at a time (with intervals in between). So, as the show progresses, he finds out more and more who he is.
Well, traffic accidents killed about 41,000 people and injured about 3.2 million more
And, of course, we all believe that the police don't enforce traffic laws just because they usually bring in money do we?</SARCASM>
Left myself logged in and a co-worker thought this was funny
:-)
Speaking of security problems...
Many US reactors are still controlled by PDP-8s - 1 MHz machines with a 4K address space of 12 bit words.
Which tend to be pretty secure and reliable... Thank God!
You forgot to mention that the walk to school was uphill both ways!
Talk about a gross misunderstanding of the law.
Misstatement, perhaps; not misunderstanding.
I forgot to mention warrants. Of course I know about them.
And I don't even know if I mind the fact that a warrant was issued in this case -- I might agree with it.
I just am a little concerned at the number of "Big Brother" issues that keep coming up and my only goal was to point out that the issue is not whether he "got what he deserved" or not, but rather, whether or not that evidence is a violation of privacy and if it should be admitted.
He got what he deserved
That may be true. But so would a murderer whose house was searched without his permission if that evidence were admitted.
Historically, our judicial system has been willing to allow guilty people to go free when their rights (especially privacy) have been violated as a mechanism to deter the law enforcement agencies from violating those rights.
And I, for one, happen to think that things should stay that way.
So, "he got what he deserved" is not the point... the ends do NOT always justify the means.
There may be some good natured fun had at the expense of Americans in the great white north, but people here don't grimace when you mention the US of A.
:-)
Unless, of course, they are traveling and someone calls them "Americans."
I never understood how anybody liked EITHER of them (the eraser or the touchpad). I always prefered the mini-trackball. I had an NEC laptop in 1997 that had a trackball on the front and still wish I had a pointing device like that on a laptop. It was the only device that I felt I had any degree of precision with.
Correct... And someone elsewehre posted a REAL simple "vaccination" until you can upgrade your server/ssl. Since it gets in through apache and creates a "/tmp/.bugtraq.c" that it then uses gcc to compile, just execute the following commands as root:
/tmp/.bugtraq /tmp/.bugtraq
.c will show you if it has attacked your system.
#touch
#chmod 000
That should make it impossible for it to create the executable -- and the presence of the
(Note: This is a preventitive measure of this specific worm. All someone would have to do is change the filenames that it uses to get around this, so fix it properly asap)
As a pilot also, I don't completely agree. If it's a VFR day, when planes can "see and avoid" each other, I agree. But if it's an IFR day, when lotsa people are in the clouds, a confused or malevolant controller could have two planes shooting the same approach at the same time. It's UNLIKELY, but quite possible.
Oh, just write it off as another blow to privacy. Won't be long before someone in the government knows where we are at all times and what we are doing.
This isn't already there for many reasons.
First of all, innovation in the aviation field are VERY slow thanks to the liabilities involved. If someone introduces some new innovation and then a plane with that new device crashes, even if the pilot is drunk, the innovator gets sued. Almost ALWAYS happens and the innovater often loses with a multi-million dollar verdict. It's pretty easy to convince the non-pilot public that this new device/equipment was at fault.
Also, it just takes time to change such a system. Yes, they have planes that CAN fly themselves from start to finish (including take-off, landing and even taxi) but navigation is not the key role of controllers -- aircraft avoidance is.
A few more innovations need to be made in a system to allow aircraft to travel automatically AND avoid midairs. Not much has yet been done to automate that. It is only recently that the FAA has even required airlines to have the equipment to show the pilots directly where other planes are. Until just a few years ago, the controllers would tell the pilots where nearby aircraft were.
It'll still be a while before they couple this system to the autopilot and program it to find a path through the other aircraft. And that product will have serious potential liabilities should it ever make a "mistake".
Give it time... it'll happen.
WebVan just never chose to use that model. Their whole business plan depended on supplying the goods themselves. Peapod, OTOH, does exactly what you suggest -- buys from local supermarkets and delivers. If the business model you suggest is viable, they should be.
S'funny. I've been drawing that parallel also. When I mention him and people ask me who Tesla was, I often say "Well, let's use an analogy... When we look back at developing electrical generation and distribution, Edison was the Bill Gates and Tesla was the Linus Tolvalds."
Yup... works just great on a linux laptop. As said above, just like a standard modem with PPP but a bit slow.
:)
I have two friends using them on their laptops and they are quite happy... even with the speed limitations.
Just don't try to do Xforwarding!