Okay, so then the alternative is for the government to step in and control the ways in which media outlets report on science, politics, religion, economy, technology, current affairs, sports, and history... because somebody could get their facts wrong while pursuing entertainment value in any of those spheres.
Or should the government control reporting only in the areas of science, politics, and the economy, while leaving media outlets with uncensored control over technology, sports, and some of the rest?
Or is it just science that needs a government minister's approval to make sure there are no damaging 10 second soundbites?
I always just assumed this was about climate/oilsands politics. I seriously hope you're wrong about the christian fundamentalist angle - that would just be incredibly depressing.
Well then it's up to the media outlet to ensure they are getting it "right," because you can find all sorts of damaging 10 second soundbites out there, whether from industry, academia, religion, or just some freak standing on the street corner holding a poster talking about the impending doomsday.
Good luck getting most people to even vote, let alone go beyond their general apathy.
And doubly good luck getting most people to spend more that 25 seconds listening to only the most facile recap of current issues before making up their minds on how they'll vote. I've long thought that the voter form should include a randomized series of questions testing knowledge of current events, political affairs, basic economics - all at a really basic level. The people who get less than half correct have their vote counted as once. The people who do better get their vote counted maybe two or three times.
Of course there is no way this will ever come to pass since it violates your second agenda above. Pretty much the last thing any political party wants is an informed, engaged electorate that can't be swayed with idiotic soundbites.
How old are you? Because in my observation the real propaganda efforts only really started in the last few years. The other stuff you're talking about is commonly known as "national pride" or perhaps "jingoism," and if you're an American then it's pretty ironic if you're blasting another country for an excess of jingoism.
Yup, that's basically the conservative talking point: scientists are just a bunch of academic elitists, and we don't need facts or research to tell us what Canadians - deep down inside - really know to be true.
The core of the problem is that the conservative party currently in government is insanely partisan. Their entire MO is about "message management," with actual governing coming in a distant second or third. So of course they are going to try to muzzle scientists, and the actual research they are muzzling doesn't even need to make sense - it's done more as a Pavlovian reflex without taking the time to analyze whether the information is even sensitive or not.
The hypocrisy of it all is astounding considering this same party campaigned on the promise of "transparency and accountability" during the 2006 election.
Read Why your World is about to get a whole lot smaller by Jeff Rubin to get a sense of the problems associated with all the easy alternatives. In short, natural gas inventories are not nearly enough to act as a replacement for crude oil, and while coal is abundant, switching to coal-based synfuels will have an absolutely murderous impact on the climate.
Not necessarily - people who are raised in different cultures are exposed to different norms, different proverbs, etc. as they grow up.
"hungry people have especially clear minds"
I believe there is a similar saying in India that goes something like "When the belly is full, the lips start moving." It isn't a reflection of them being sadists - it is a reflection of a society that hasn't had 4-5 generations of ease and plenty behind it.
You want to do something that threatens the endless supply of cheap, pointless shit lining the shelves at WalMart? I think you underestimate the popular consumer backlash that would create.
When my CC company suspends my account for a few hours or days, the maximum "loss" suffered by me is the inability to buy shit until we get it sorted out. If my CC company and I never manage to sort out our differences, my biggest loss is that I need to go apply for a new card somewhere else.
When PP suspends an account for a few days or weeks or months, the maximum "loss" suffered is a potentially large amount of interest until the account is unfrozen and the money can be withdrawn and placed where it has earning potential. If PayPal and I never manage to sort out our differences, my biggest loss is every single penny of the money in that account.
If there were a way on Google to waste several hours of each day growing virtual crops, shooting virtual gangsters, and cooking virtual meals, in the quest for virtual points and virtual validation... there are numerous people I know who would almost certainly sign up and proceed to send me an endless string of updates on their latest virtual achievements.
Slashdot Mirror
I'll second that recommendation for OpenSUSE. In my experience, "it just works" on more hardware than Ubuntu, and YaST is a great admin tool.
Too late, I already registered regularsqlwithanindexedtimestampcolumn.com
I've met plenty of young self-entitled pricks.
There's an app for that.
When abusive and threatening language is homegrown, it qualifies as a form of protected speech.
Stick to Twitter and you should be alright.
I wonder if their handbag ripoffs are as shitty as their HTML ripoffs.
Strange - that link makes absolutely no mention of "blazing fast porn downloads." Have they even done their market research?
Okay, so then the alternative is for the government to step in and control the ways in which media outlets report on science, politics, religion, economy, technology, current affairs, sports, and history ... because somebody could get their facts wrong while pursuing entertainment value in any of those spheres.
Or should the government control reporting only in the areas of science, politics, and the economy, while leaving media outlets with uncensored control over technology, sports, and some of the rest?
Or is it just science that needs a government minister's approval to make sure there are no damaging 10 second soundbites?
I always just assumed this was about climate/oilsands politics. I seriously hope you're wrong about the christian fundamentalist angle - that would just be incredibly depressing.
Well then it's up to the media outlet to ensure they are getting it "right," because you can find all sorts of damaging 10 second soundbites out there, whether from industry, academia, religion, or just some freak standing on the street corner holding a poster talking about the impending doomsday.
Very, very few people share your opinion(s).
Hell, these guys barely cast a shadow anymore.
Good luck getting most people to even vote, let alone go beyond their general apathy.
And doubly good luck getting most people to spend more that 25 seconds listening to only the most facile recap of current issues before making up their minds on how they'll vote. I've long thought that the voter form should include a randomized series of questions testing knowledge of current events, political affairs, basic economics - all at a really basic level. The people who get less than half correct have their vote counted as once. The people who do better get their vote counted maybe two or three times.
Of course there is no way this will ever come to pass since it violates your second agenda above. Pretty much the last thing any political party wants is an informed, engaged electorate that can't be swayed with idiotic soundbites.
I always thought the average was average ... looks like I'm going to have to dust of the statistics texts.
The reason is basically that the current government is allergic to anything that puts them "off message." It's pure politics.
How old are you? Because in my observation the real propaganda efforts only really started in the last few years. The other stuff you're talking about is commonly known as "national pride" or perhaps "jingoism," and if you're an American then it's pretty ironic if you're blasting another country for an excess of jingoism.
Yup, that's basically the conservative talking point: scientists are just a bunch of academic elitists, and we don't need facts or research to tell us what Canadians - deep down inside - really know to be true.
The core of the problem is that the conservative party currently in government is insanely partisan. Their entire MO is about "message management," with actual governing coming in a distant second or third. So of course they are going to try to muzzle scientists, and the actual research they are muzzling doesn't even need to make sense - it's done more as a Pavlovian reflex without taking the time to analyze whether the information is even sensitive or not.
The hypocrisy of it all is astounding considering this same party campaigned on the promise of "transparency and accountability" during the 2006 election.
Read Why your World is about to get a whole lot smaller by Jeff Rubin to get a sense of the problems associated with all the easy alternatives. In short, natural gas inventories are not nearly enough to act as a replacement for crude oil, and while coal is abundant, switching to coal-based synfuels will have an absolutely murderous impact on the climate.
Slashdotters ... take hot showers with nice smelling bath products
See right here is where you expose yourself as having no idea what you're talking about.
This man is a sadist.
Not necessarily - people who are raised in different cultures are exposed to different norms, different proverbs, etc. as they grow up.
"hungry people have especially clear minds"
I believe there is a similar saying in India that goes something like "When the belly is full, the lips start moving." It isn't a reflection of them being sadists - it is a reflection of a society that hasn't had 4-5 generations of ease and plenty behind it.
You want to do something that threatens the endless supply of cheap, pointless shit lining the shelves at WalMart? I think you underestimate the popular consumer backlash that would create.
The main difference as I see it:
But aside from that, there is no difference.
If there were a way on Google to waste several hours of each day growing virtual crops, shooting virtual gangsters, and cooking virtual meals, in the quest for virtual points and virtual validation ... there are numerous people I know who would almost certainly sign up and proceed to send me an endless string of updates on their latest virtual achievements.