I don't mean to offend, but you bring up to mind another point, and that is that a lot of these kids suffer from low self-esteem. Now, I don't know about you, but when somebody told me I had low self esteem, I'd punch 'em in the nose, because I didn't want to hear that kind of [stuff]. I suppose, then, the final question is that of "Do these kids need psychological support", and "What kind"?
I think the answer is "yes, they do, but not sit-on-the-couch kind of psycological help". These kids need friends, and that isn't going to happen unless they are put in an environment where they can make friends. Even "Malcom in the Middle" made friends in his "Smart Kids" class.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
seriously, though, when I was young, there were programs for gifted kids, (Enhance the Chance, SLUFFY, et alia) that took them out of the rigamarole of everyday 'skool' and gave them an opportunity to learn more interesting things. (Where do you think I learned the word "rigamarole"?) Whatever happened to these programs? If they still exist, why are they not effective? Should programs like this exist in the first place?
I say they should. Programs like this provide an intellectual gift to those kids who are unable to express themselves through, as my father says, "fo'ball", or such. Poindexters need lovin' care, too.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Heinlein had the right idea: a private corporation would be better able to send things into space. No hassles from a bloated government, no begging for money, and you get to have kiosks on every corner of the moon! Grand, ennit?
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Yes, but... to me five bucks is crap. That's like a meal. ONE. A really good cup of chai is like 2.50 at the coffeeshop down the street. I would gladly switch places with you to have to pay 80 a month in bills - have to pay about 400 a month for the exact same (or worse) "services". If you want to complain, protest to Napster and make them only make you pay a quarter or something equivicable, and be glad you only pay 80 a month for food et al. Lucky bastard.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
... that we as a culture (a Geek Culture, of course.) should demand Cap'n Crunch as an ikon, worthy of veneration - that is, unless there are ikonoklasts in the/. world. Man... the things you come up with half an hour out of bed.
(I mis-spelled "icon" on purpose, BTW, to distinguish between the thing you click on, and the thing you worship. "Ikon" is from the Greek of the similar spelling (iota-kappa-omikron-nu), and denotes a thing worthy of worship. See Greek and Byzantine history for more.)
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Trade you "The Sunny Beaches of the Gulf Coast" (minus Louisiania, which we can't trade since they're a foreign country) for the return of "Kids in the Hall", eh? How about "The Eastern Seaboard" for Moxy Früvous? Please?
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
... for a culture that prided itself on being the successor to the Roman Empire, America sure has a problem with the morals and values of said culture. Either you go whole hog or go hungry, eh. Don't run from sex or violence! Phaloi on every streetcorner! Hell, just let the people vote themselves bread and cirucuses! In forty years, the American Empire will have fallen, and the Canadian and Mexican barbarians will overrun the land. Yaay! Anarchy, baby!
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Ouch. Very Ouch. Devious plans like this make you almost respect the enemy, like Optimus Prime vs. Megatron. With any luck, we're Megatron, since anyone who remembers (or has watched again recently) the Transformers Movie knows what happens to the good guys in war.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Fellow Geeks! The geeks with their hands in their pockets have more power than the combined power of the captialists, besides which, the capitalists can't put their hands there.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Perhaps the French Government should instead sell insurance to recording corporations and artists "protecting" them from piracy. Not only does this levy the burden on the ones complaining, it also (hopefully) keeps the number of annoying boy/girl bands and po-gangsta-crappers down.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
I know it breaks geek tradidition to say this (heresey! they cry) but: NEVER, EVER pick up first generation tech, even 1st gen deriv's. DVD-ROM AND Sony's got some kind of new high-def codec? That's money better spent on getting through college/morgage/kids. Let Gates and Torvalds break theirs first.
Geek Culture killed my dog/ and I don't think it's fair...
Imagine if you will a world where none of those technologies fell - a world with p-mail, zepplins, mueseums with "wax-cycle" computers from the early 30's, where logging in means you hit someone with a slide rule, and Amiga Computer Co. just bought up Apple and IBM and is seriously making a run for AOL/Time-Edison.
I'm in fact working on a little project which compares the science fiction from about the 1920's on up to the 1990's, showing
a) how the SF of each generation showcased both its optimism and its dark desires, and
b) how much SF sucks nowdays compared to Flash Gordon, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet, et alia.
Admit it, a lot of those VOY eps with Tom and Harry playing Captain Proton are some of the better ones.
I use Opera, and all of those crappy windows open up inside of the program. I'm reading along, and all the sudden there's like, twelve, of those boxen scattered on my screen.
Besides, some people actually do look at banner ads. I personally am ten times more likely to look at the banner ad than a pop-up, which I just close.
Star Wars, Episode VII: The Empire Strikes Back To Get Its Groove
Empire of the Rising Groove
AAAAAND everyone's favourite
George "Stella" Orwell's Ninteen-Eighty-Groove
Did that hurt? I'm sorry.:^P
Why the Ancient World Didn't get very far
on
The Renaissance
·
· Score: 2
(maybe it's off-topic, maybe not - Mod only knows)
At any rate, the reason the Roman Empire didn't last is they were afraid of change. Comparison of the Eastern Empire to the Western Empire (ie Byzantium to 'Rome') shows that the West began to fall almost immediatly, with everything but the city itself crumbling. The Eastern Empire, long considered to be effeminite and wussy, in fact managed to grow considerably due to trade (which was a very un-Roman way to make a living) and innovation (eg "greek fire"). Most likely the Eastern Empire would have "made it" had not the Persians to the south suddenly converted from Zorastorianism to Islam and become twice as fierce as they had been.
BUT, the point is, the West fell because it feared change, and that is what prevails today in the form of Neo-luddites et al. So, are you a successful, effeminite Greek emptoros, or a failing, masculine ROMAN serf? I assure you, to the Ancient world, that was the choice. Read the books, esp. Petronius, Horace, Catullus, and Ovid.
Are you cold, poor, worn, and hungry?/
Are there lots of things you lack?/
Is your life made up of misery?/
Then DUMP THE (RIAA) BOSSES OFF YOUR BACK!!
Folks, it's one thing to charge netcasters who 'cast from their back room at four in the morning, since what they're doing is essentally what radio stations *pay* for, but it's quite another if these radio stations, who have paid royalty and other fees, suddenly have to pay for broadcasting over another medium. It is my belief (and isn't it always mine?) that the RIAA or whomever should create NEW licenses which allow you to broadcast over both aetherial and etherneterial media, and not make you buy two licenses for doing essentally the SAME THING. Until then, the bosses are simply like all other bosses, ie, they are plutocrats, seeking wealth for its own sake and not caring about fairness and logic.
Are you almost split asunder?/
Busted like a long-eared jack?/
Boob, why don't you buck like thunder?/
AND DUMP THE BOSSES OFF YOUR BACK!
Look here, folks, this is why rampant capitalism doesn't work well. It's too bad the stupid people who make money for the sake of making money will find some way to dodge the next recession. Here's to a crash!
Why don't you people like Opera? It's simple, easy-to-use, and comes with puppies! Jeez. Besides, those of us who see scruples as simply a thing to be used in times of necessity but otherwise abandoned, there are *many* ways to not see banner ads.
I realised that when I started recommending opera (www.opera.com) to people as an alternative to IE. As long as you don't mind a few minor things not working (odd image loading, java not implemented right &c &c), it's all gravy.
Slashdot Mirror
I don't mean to offend, but you bring up to mind another point, and that is that a lot of these kids suffer from low self-esteem. Now, I don't know about you, but when somebody told me I had low self esteem, I'd punch 'em in the nose, because I didn't want to hear that kind of [stuff]. I suppose, then, the final question is that of "Do these kids need psychological support", and "What kind"?
I think the answer is "yes, they do, but not sit-on-the-couch kind of psycological help". These kids need friends, and that isn't going to happen unless they are put in an environment where they can make friends. Even "Malcom in the Middle" made friends in his "Smart Kids" class.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
seriously, though, when I was young, there were programs for gifted kids, (Enhance the Chance, SLUFFY, et alia) that took them out of the rigamarole of everyday 'skool' and gave them an opportunity to learn more interesting things. (Where do you think I learned the word "rigamarole"?) Whatever happened to these programs? If they still exist, why are they not effective? Should programs like this exist in the first place?
I say they should. Programs like this provide an intellectual gift to those kids who are unable to express themselves through, as my father says, "fo'ball", or such. Poindexters need lovin' care, too.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Heinlein had the right idea: a private corporation would be better able to send things into space. No hassles from a bloated government, no begging for money, and you get to have kiosks on every corner of the moon! Grand, ennit?
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Yes, but... to me five bucks is crap. That's like a meal. ONE. A really good cup of chai is like 2.50 at the coffeeshop down the street. I would gladly switch places with you to have to pay 80 a month in bills - have to pay about 400 a month for the exact same (or worse) "services". If you want to complain, protest to Napster and make them only make you pay a quarter or something equivicable, and be glad you only pay 80 a month for food et al. Lucky bastard.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
You poor child. You must realise that a person's actions in the world are measured by their success, not how many or what they screw.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
"And Mr Barry maintains that record sales are rising: 'If you give people more access to music, they buy more music.'"
Ah ha! You see, someone understands. Maybe this will be peace. If it's cheap, I'm for it, say $5 a month.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
... that we as a culture (a Geek Culture, of course.) should demand Cap'n Crunch as an ikon, worthy of veneration - that is, unless there are ikonoklasts in the /. world. Man... the things you come up with half an hour out of bed .
(I mis-spelled "icon" on purpose, BTW, to distinguish between the thing you click on, and the thing you worship. "Ikon" is from the Greek of the similar spelling (iota-kappa-omikron-nu), and denotes a thing worthy of worship. See Greek and Byzantine history for more.)
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Trade you "The Sunny Beaches of the Gulf Coast" (minus Louisiania, which we can't trade since they're a foreign country) for the return of "Kids in the Hall", eh? How about "The Eastern Seaboard" for Moxy Früvous? Please?
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
... for a culture that prided itself on being the successor to the Roman Empire, America sure has a problem with the morals and values of said culture. Either you go whole hog or go hungry, eh. Don't run from sex or violence! Phaloi on every streetcorner! Hell, just let the people vote themselves bread and cirucuses! In forty years, the American Empire will have fallen, and the Canadian and Mexican barbarians will overrun the land. Yaay! Anarchy, baby!
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Ouch. Very Ouch. Devious plans like this make you almost respect the enemy, like Optimus Prime vs. Megatron. With any luck, we're Megatron, since anyone who remembers (or has watched again recently) the Transformers Movie knows what happens to the good guys in war.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Aww, judge, your damn laws... the good people don't need 'em and the bad people don't use 'em, so what the hell good are they anyway?
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Fellow Geeks! The geeks with their hands in their pockets have more power than the combined power of the captialists, besides which, the capitalists can't put their hands there.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
Perhaps the French Government should instead sell insurance to recording corporations and artists "protecting" them from piracy. Not only does this levy the burden on the ones complaining, it also (hopefully) keeps the number of annoying boy/girl bands and po-gangsta-crappers down.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
I know it breaks geek tradidition to say this (heresey! they cry) but: NEVER, EVER pick up first generation tech, even 1st gen deriv's. DVD-ROM AND Sony's got some kind of new high-def codec? That's money better spent on getting through college/morgage/kids. Let Gates and Torvalds break theirs first.
Geek Culture killed my dog/
and I don't think it's fair...
I'm in fact working on a little project which compares the science fiction from about the 1920's on up to the 1990's, showing
- a) how the SF of each generation showcased both its optimism and its dark desires, and
- b) how much SF sucks nowdays compared to Flash Gordon, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet, et alia.
Admit it, a lot of those VOY eps with Tom and Harry playing Captain Proton are some of the better ones.I use Opera, and all of those crappy windows open up inside of the program. I'm reading along, and all the sudden there's like, twelve, of those boxen scattered on my screen.
Besides, some people actually do look at banner ads. I personally am ten times more likely to look at the banner ad than a pop-up, which I just close.
- Star Wars, Episode VII: The Empire Strikes Back To Get Its Groove
- Empire of the Rising Groove
AAAAAND everyone's favouriteDid that hurt? I'm sorry.
(maybe it's off-topic, maybe not - Mod only knows)
At any rate, the reason the Roman Empire didn't last is they were afraid of change. Comparison of the Eastern Empire to the Western Empire (ie Byzantium to 'Rome') shows that the West began to fall almost immediatly, with everything but the city itself crumbling. The Eastern Empire, long considered to be effeminite and wussy, in fact managed to grow considerably due to trade (which was a very un-Roman way to make a living) and innovation (eg "greek fire"). Most likely the Eastern Empire would have "made it" had not the Persians to the south suddenly converted from Zorastorianism to Islam and become twice as fierce as they had been.
BUT, the point is, the West fell because it feared change, and that is what prevails today in the form of Neo-luddites et al. So, are you a successful, effeminite Greek emptoros, or a failing, masculine ROMAN serf? I assure you, to the Ancient world, that was the choice. Read the books, esp. Petronius, Horace, Catullus, and Ovid.
Are you cold, poor, worn, and hungry?/
Are there lots of things you lack?/
Is your life made up of misery?/
Then DUMP THE (RIAA) BOSSES OFF YOUR BACK!!
Folks, it's one thing to charge netcasters who 'cast from their back room at four in the morning, since what they're doing is essentally what radio stations *pay* for, but it's quite another if these radio stations, who have paid royalty and other fees, suddenly have to pay for broadcasting over another medium. It is my belief (and isn't it always mine?) that the RIAA or whomever should create NEW licenses which allow you to broadcast over both aetherial and etherneterial media, and not make you buy two licenses for doing essentally the SAME THING. Until then, the bosses are simply like all other bosses, ie, they are plutocrats, seeking wealth for its own sake and not caring about fairness and logic.
Are you almost split asunder?/
Busted like a long-eared jack?/
Boob, why don't you buck like thunder?/
AND DUMP THE BOSSES OFF YOUR BACK!
Look here, folks, this is why rampant capitalism doesn't work well. It's too bad the stupid people who make money for the sake of making money will find some way to dodge the next recession. Here's to a crash!
Why don't you people like Opera? It's simple, easy-to-use, and comes with puppies! Jeez. Besides, those of us who see scruples as simply a thing to be used in times of necessity but otherwise abandoned, there are *many* ways to not see banner ads.
GOOD FOR YOU! I'm so proud *somebody* knows their mythic history.
"Blow up your TV/Throw away your paper/
Move to the country/Build you a home"
I was going to make stupid comments about increasing excess substance use, but golly if you lurkers didn't get to it before me. Good for you!
I realised that when I started recommending opera (www.opera.com) to people as an alternative to IE. As long as you don't mind a few minor things not working (odd image loading, java not implemented right &c &c), it's all gravy.
The gods of Iridium are crying, and their tears like large satellites crash into the sea.