This again looks like sonething on the line 'it's out of the ordinary, lets fix it.' Just that someone behaves or thinks differently does not mean that he has to drugged into 'normality'. We are talking about humans, not some kind of machine that has to behave and act in an predictable an orderly fashion.
Well I think there are 2 possible scenarios (assuming that indeed 1/5 of the population are afflicted with a 'mental disorder') 1) This is just normal and the definition is wrong. In that case throwing any kind of drugs at it is just plain wrong, see above.
2) This is indeed a _symptom_ that someting is wrong. In that case it would be far more effective to try to find the roots instead of trying to cure cancer with painkillers.
In any case using chemicals to 'correct' the psyche is like brain surgery with a sledgehammer. Of course this whole thing would be another nice reason for profiling as many subjects as possible just to weed out the unhappy and correct them, preferably by a computer without humand intervention, because humans could be nuts.
Now I dont know who reserved this one: slashdot.de, but its content looks very much like someone who grabbed this name since there is a small note that somethings going to be there soon which is required if you want to have a chance in any kind of trial... Ciao, Peter
2) Dumbing down.... are we really getting more stupid??? Are we unevolving into chimps who don't understand subtleties anymore. No, I don't think so. Well maybe a litte because a lot of people prefer to consume without thinking or using their imagination. I think a real Problem is, that more and more we tend to look at the worst case possible. You post somthing like that, 10000 people read it, one of them panicks, runs around shooting, jumps of a cliff, whatever... so this one stupid person (or maybe not so stupid, it just was the last thing to tip him over) will create a backlash to the publisher. Maybe relatives will take it to court and with a good lawyer our nice litte satire will be viewd as a crime. Case closed. Now the result is, that everyone who does a satire like this must expect this result. Where does the FBI (or any other law enforcment organization) come in? Well, it's their job. There may be a lot wrong with the way they operate, but once experience teaches that a fake like that cause harm they are required to respond, because if they dont a huge and angy mob, consisting of reporters who are always in the need of a sensation, will come down on them really hard. Right now the media seems to be pretty quiet when int comes to overreaction, especially if no one's hurt, or no one important anyway... . But failure to react seems to be a major crime, obviuos facts, like it's always easier to judge afterwards, are ignored. Well back to the FBI. It does not matter what they think about it and I don't think the FBI only hires idiots. They may see this is only a joke but they are still required to respond. Now of course that does not in a single way justify the measures they took in this case, but this has been discussed elswere, has it? Anyway, the result is that any kind of media slowly but unstoppable detoriates as it andjusts itself to the most stupid of its users. Because they are the ones most likely to cause that kind of trouble. Of course if a media once adjusts itself to the, uhm, intelectually challenged?, exactly those will be attrackted. Anyone knows this one: 'Idiot proof Programms will be used by Idiots.'? And of course this will amplify the whole effect even more.
1.) There is no such thing as unsupectible and harmless software. 2.) Never underestimate the creativeness of professional data-collectors. 3.) Don't let your kids use your computer unsupervised or at last make sure they are not able to install anything.
Well I have seen many complaints about big corporations using this kind of thing to be able to taget their marketing better. Annoying as this may be, this is still about the most harmless use. Consider that this database might contain data about purchases of medicaments. Maybe you are addicted to painkillers, this would easily deduced from the data. And you expect to get a job with that if there are other Canidates? But the worst (IMO) missuse is the possibility of both, corporations, political entities (legal and illegal) and even individuals (providing they have enough $$) to weed through this material and isolate people that match certain patterns.
Radical racist organisations will _love_ to find out the adresses of their enemies, its going to make live a lot easier to them. And that is just _one_ example.
Ciao, Peter (Who's./ Password finally arrived. Thanks:) )
Slashdot Mirror
Please someone define 'mental disorder'.
This again looks like sonething on the line 'it's out of the ordinary, lets fix it.' Just that someone behaves or thinks differently does not mean that he has to drugged into 'normality'. We are talking about humans, not some kind of machine that has to behave and act in an predictable an orderly fashion.
Well I think there are 2 possible scenarios (assuming that indeed 1/5 of the population are afflicted with a 'mental disorder')
1) This is just normal and the definition is wrong. In that case throwing any kind of drugs at it is just plain wrong, see above.
2) This is indeed a _symptom_ that someting is wrong. In that case it would be far more effective to try to find the roots instead of trying to cure cancer with painkillers.
In any case using chemicals to 'correct' the psyche is like brain surgery with a sledgehammer. Of course this whole thing would be another nice reason for profiling as many subjects as possible just to weed out the unhappy and correct them, preferably by a computer without humand intervention, because humans could be nuts.
The Computer is your friend.
Ciao, Peter (Paranoid)
Now I dont know who reserved this one: slashdot.de, but its content looks very much like someone who grabbed this name since there is a small note that somethings going to be there soon which is required if you want to have a chance in any kind of trial ...
Ciao, Peter
2) Dumbing down.... are we really getting more stupid??? Are we unevolving into chimps who don't understand subtleties anymore. ... so this one stupid person (or maybe not so stupid, it just was the last thing to tip him over) will create a backlash to the publisher. Maybe relatives will take it to court and with a good lawyer our nice litte satire will be viewd as a crime. Case closed. ... . But failure to react seems to be a major crime, obviuos facts, like it's always easier to judge afterwards, are ignored. Well back to the FBI. It does not matter what they think about it and I don't think the FBI only hires idiots. They may see this is only a joke but they are still required to respond.
No, I don't think so. Well maybe a litte because a lot of people prefer to consume without thinking or using their imagination.
I think a real Problem is, that more and more we tend to look at the worst case possible. You post somthing like that, 10000 people read it, one of them panicks, runs around shooting, jumps of a cliff, whatever
Now the result is, that everyone who does a satire like this must expect this result. Where does the FBI (or any other law enforcment organization) come in? Well, it's their job. There may be a lot wrong with the way they operate, but once experience teaches that a fake like that cause harm they are required to respond, because if they dont a huge and angy mob, consisting of reporters who are always in the need of a sensation, will come down on them really hard. Right now the media seems to be pretty quiet when int comes to overreaction, especially if no one's hurt, or no one important anyway
Now of course that does not in a single way justify the measures they took in this case, but this has been discussed elswere, has it?
Anyway, the result is that any kind of media slowly but unstoppable detoriates as it andjusts itself to the most stupid of its users. Because they are the ones most likely to cause that kind of trouble. Of course if a media once adjusts itself to the, uhm, intelectually challenged?, exactly those will be attrackted. Anyone knows this one: 'Idiot proof Programms will be used by Idiots.'? And of course this will amplify the whole effect even more.
Ciao, Peter
1.) There is no such thing as unsupectible and harmless software.
2.) Never underestimate the creativeness of professional data-collectors.
3.) Don't let your kids use your computer unsupervised or at last make sure they are not able to install anything.
Ciao, Peter
Well I have seen many complaints about big corporations using this kind of thing to be able to taget their marketing better. Annoying as this may be, this is still about the most harmless use.
./ Password finally arrived. Thanks:) )
Consider that this database might contain data about purchases of medicaments. Maybe you are addicted to painkillers, this would easily deduced from the data. And you expect to get a job with that if there are other Canidates?
But the worst (IMO) missuse is the possibility of both, corporations, political entities (legal and illegal) and even individuals (providing they have enough $$) to weed through this material and isolate people that match certain patterns.
Radical racist organisations will _love_ to find out the adresses of their enemies, its going to make live a lot easier to them. And that is just _one_ example.
Ciao, Peter (Who's