Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than the majority deserves.
Shaw used the royal "we" and his observation was directed at your point. Democratic forms of government at best serve the lowest common demoniator (which is something rather different than the majority). At worst it is, of course, nothing more than a self-satisfied lynch mob.
Which is why the framers gave us a Congress instead of a democracy (they knew about Athens), under a constitution (they knew about Rome). They anticipated Shaw's further observation that anyone who robs Peter to pay Paul can always count on the support of Paul.
It is not the fault of Congress if the least common denominator has demanded more and more democracy while deserving it less and less.
It is the fundamental premise of our governmental philosophy that the government will be corrupted and that it is the responsibility of The People, freemen all, to see to their own freedoms.
Where The People demand the "freedom" to be endentured in order that they may be "free" to watch Survivor and Big Brother on a really big TV, that is the freedom they will get.
Freedom is messy and uncomfortable. The People would rather be comfortable serfs than uncomfortable freemen, in numbers far greater than a simple majority. Let's call it, ooooooooh (pulling a number out of my ass that probably isn't too far wrong) - 98%.
Give me liberty, or give me. ..ooooooooooooooo, shiney!
i dont need the added weight making my pants fall down.
Back in the day we solved this problem by buying pants that fit; although I admit it is amusing to watch the chavs trying to play basketball with one hand tied up in the problem of holding their pants up.
And extra amusing when one of them manages to trip over their own pants.
Because in Alpha we might want to change things quite a bit, so we tie them on with a bit of string. By the Beta phase we're more certain and willing to risk adhesive backing.
And if it's in production...
It'll be glossies with "Hello. My Name is" preprinted on them; with your choice of butterflies or ponies.
Ruination of good Coffee and good Whisky as my dad always says
That's why I use the cheap stuff for my breakfast. Coffee and whiskey you wouldn't deign to drink straight turns into the elixer of the gods when you mix 'em. Throw in a quarter ounce of good, unadulterated tobacoo and I'm good to go for the day.
Interestingly it's also a relatively new invention, not much more than 50 years old.
A coincidence that it arrived just in time for my arrival? I don't think so.
In any case the Irish have always been pretty good at making stuff up yesterday and tommorow calling it an ancient tradition. Bumpy Jumpers (Irish sweater for the Yanks; not to be confused with a lumpy jumper, you might acutally want one of those; and they do look good in bumpy jumpers); little more than an early 20th century marketing gimmic as a way to bring some money into Aran. The "traditonal" Irish outfit? Designed out of, ummmmm, whole cloth by nationalist commercial fashion designer about 1920. The traditional Irish music of my youth bears almost no resemblence to the "traditional" Irish music you hear today. Who let the 'zouks and goatskins in anyway?
As an aside I showed up for a gig as a traditional Irish fiddler once and the folk nazi promoter got all bent out of shape because I wasn't wearing the prescribed native peasant dress for the music. I was wearing a nice, gray suit and a tie.
Look at some old photographs. A nice, gray suit and a tie is the traditional clothing of the 19th century Irish farmer/fiddler. Just because it's "normal" don't mean it's not ethnic. The suit is the ethnic clothing of the Brits; which they spread to the world at the point of a gun. Indians are now prone to call their own clothes "ethnic."
Anyway, so maybe I'll have an apple or a bannana at breakfast as well. It's no surprise that an apple wakes you up better than coffee; coffee is just a stimulant. Glucose is the fuel your brain runs on. Rule of thumb, carbs when you want to be alert, fats and protein when you want to just veg out/go to sleep. Think about it, Chinese food and an hour later you're hungry again and looking for more food, Christmas goose and you fall asleep on the sofa while trying to watch the game.
The only thing it's good for is making defense contractors richer.
Couldn't we accomplish the same thing by just buying a lot of flak jackets from them, which would have the side of effect of, ya know, actually saving some lives?
Physics, one of the sciences, like chemsitry, that climatologists need expertise in to be climatologists, but aren't.
It would seem that you know a considerable amount more about climate change than the world's collective climatologists...
The world's colletive climatologists know they are clueless. The world's collective climatologists do not appear on your TV however, so perhaps you have missed them.
getting angry and swearing at people doesn't help at all
Fuck that shit.
. ..cleaning up our lifestyles and making an effort to preserve the environment. ..
Something I'm all for.
. . . will help.
But not necessarily global warming; since we certainly didn't cause it (pretty much all climatologists, and nonclimatologists, are agreed on this, since the current round started about 12,000 years aqo, and you should be damned greatful it did); and may not be accelerating it.
In fact, it would be absurd to think we can't have an impact on our planet. ..
Everything alive and a good many things that aren't have an impact on our planet. Some of them aren't even of our planet. That big ball of fire in the sky for instance.
Personally I'm rather unhappy about some of the impact we have on the planet. I'm actually a bit of an "Eco-Freak." But I'm perfectly content to oppose them on their own merits without without making shit up.
. ..we are changing the composition of the air. ..
. ..the fact remains that we do dump a lot of rubbish in the air, which may not affect the temperature of the planet, but it is affecting the lungs of its inhabitants.
Absofuckinlutely, and for the most part I'm agin it (so long as we're not getting all hysterical over the sudden discovery that animals fart. Just because we've only recently become aware of this fact doesn't mean that the great thundering herds of horses and bufflo didn't do it long, long ago).
So if we look at the root of the problem, (i.e. stop all the pollution) then if the "Global Warming" goes away, then we'll know that we caused it
No, we won't. The climate changes. Pretty much all the time. Even when we're not around to have an effect on it. And we don't understand it. Global warming will not only stop "all on it's own," it will even reverse, just because that's what it does. Just because that happens to correlate to something doesn't mean the things were causally connected.
Those of us who remember the 70s remember that the great "The Sky is Falling" scare back then was the sudden discovery that we're "overdue" for the next ice age and much of the cause of the current hysteria over global warming arose out of switching gears to "explain" why we aren't all freezing to death right now.
And the explanation is: "We haven't got a fucking clue," and all the fudged up computer "models" made up ad hoc out of anecdotal evidence to make the results come out the way we a priori decided they should won't get us any farther along the path of getting a clue.
Climatology as a predictive science is currently no more than scrying. The finding of patterns, after the fact, where in all likelyhood none actually exist. Fitting the data to the model instead of modeling the data. People do that all the time.
And science is supposed to be the guard against that sort of thing. And science only happens when you challange the model.
With these debates we currently discuss if global warming is real, what's making it happen and how we fix it.
Fix it? What on Earth makes you believe that a warming climate means that something is broken? The climate gets warmer, and colder, and warmer again. The Earth turns into a giant snowball, then goes all tropical.
And it was all happening before Homo Sapiens came on the scene and began thinking that he was in supreme command or something.
Sometimes the climate warms because that's what the climate does.
Maybe what we need to fix is our temporal parochialism.
Slashdot Mirror
as you'd expect, if two flakes of snow form under virtually identical conditions you end up with two virtually identical flakes.
In the sense that I would be rather surprised if one of them resembled a ham sandwich.
KFG
This sounds like the Zune's total market share is very, very small.
http://zuneworld.com/zune-fans/zune-fans/
KFG
. . .and yet are so not called to task for it.
And whose responsibility is it to do that? You are not their subject. Stop thinking like one.
KFG
Sorry, no free "twofers." See our premium service.
KFG
Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than the majority deserves.
.ooooooooooooooo, shiney!
Shaw used the royal "we" and his observation was directed at your point. Democratic forms of government at best serve the lowest common demoniator (which is something rather different than the majority). At worst it is, of course, nothing more than a self-satisfied lynch mob.
Which is why the framers gave us a Congress instead of a democracy (they knew about Athens), under a constitution (they knew about Rome). They anticipated Shaw's further observation that anyone who robs Peter to pay Paul can always count on the support of Paul.
It is not the fault of Congress if the least common denominator has demanded more and more democracy while deserving it less and less.
It is the fundamental premise of our governmental philosophy that the government will be corrupted and that it is the responsibility of The People, freemen all, to see to their own freedoms.
Where The People demand the "freedom" to be endentured in order that they may be "free" to watch Survivor and Big Brother on a really big TV, that is the freedom they will get.
Freedom is messy and uncomfortable. The People would rather be comfortable serfs than uncomfortable freemen, in numbers far greater than a simple majority. Let's call it, ooooooooh (pulling a number out of my ass that probably isn't too far wrong) - 98%.
Give me liberty, or give me. .
KFG
Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. -G.B. Shaw
KFG
Cool, now we can let all the other lazy bastards go and save some money.
And by the way, what has he done for us lately?
KFG
cute...
You really need to get out more.
KFG
Wouldn't your rather spend your tax money paying somebody who is finding a cure for cancer. . .
Please identify this person.
KFG
What they did is pretty much like figuring out the shape of an object by shooting BBs at it and looking at which ones make it past the object.
Looks just like my little brother.
KFG
i dont need the added weight making my pants fall down.
Back in the day we solved this problem by buying pants that fit; although I admit it is amusing to watch the chavs trying to play basketball with one hand tied up in the problem of holding their pants up.
And extra amusing when one of them manages to trip over their own pants.
KFG
Because in Alpha we might want to change things quite a bit, so we tie them on with a bit of string. By the Beta phase we're more certain and willing to risk adhesive backing.
And if it's in production...
It'll be glossies with "Hello. My Name is" preprinted on them; with your choice of butterflies or ponies.
KFG
. . .are you just springboarding off someone else's post to make your own unrelated point?
.
.instead of say petty thievery?
Bingo!
I don't suppose it occurred to you that his definition of "real job" might be something that involves skill . .
Why would I want to take advantage of someone with no skill?
. .
I never even saw the pickpocket.
KFG
Smart crooks are not identified. . .
Although the smartest ones get their names on the front page and a civic award.
KFG
"If they were smart, they wouldn't be crooks, they'd have real jobs."
Yeah, that's a fairly common thing for people who aren't so smart to say.
The idea of a "real job" is something the smart people invented to take advantage of people stupid enough to buy into it.
KFG
Microsoft is an abuse company that sells software.
The joke is that this is not a joke.
KFG
Did he ever think. . .?
No.
KFG
Ruination of good Coffee and good Whisky as my dad always says
That's why I use the cheap stuff for my breakfast. Coffee and whiskey you wouldn't deign to drink straight turns into the elixer of the gods when you mix 'em. Throw in a quarter ounce of good, unadulterated tobacoo and I'm good to go for the day.
Interestingly it's also a relatively new invention, not much more than 50 years old.
A coincidence that it arrived just in time for my arrival? I don't think so.
In any case the Irish have always been pretty good at making stuff up yesterday and tommorow calling it an ancient tradition. Bumpy Jumpers (Irish sweater for the Yanks; not to be confused with a lumpy jumper, you might acutally want one of those; and they do look good in bumpy jumpers); little more than an early 20th century marketing gimmic as a way to bring some money into Aran. The "traditonal" Irish outfit? Designed out of, ummmmm, whole cloth by nationalist commercial fashion designer about 1920. The traditional Irish music of my youth bears almost no resemblence to the "traditional" Irish music you hear today. Who let the 'zouks and goatskins in anyway?
As an aside I showed up for a gig as a traditional Irish fiddler once and the folk nazi promoter got all bent out of shape because I wasn't wearing the prescribed native peasant dress for the music. I was wearing a nice, gray suit and a tie.
Look at some old photographs. A nice, gray suit and a tie is the traditional clothing of the 19th century Irish farmer/fiddler. Just because it's "normal" don't mean it's not ethnic. The suit is the ethnic clothing of the Brits; which they spread to the world at the point of a gun. Indians are now prone to call their own clothes "ethnic."
Anyway, so maybe I'll have an apple or a bannana at breakfast as well. It's no surprise that an apple wakes you up better than coffee; coffee is just a stimulant. Glucose is the fuel your brain runs on. Rule of thumb, carbs when you want to be alert, fats and protein when you want to just veg out/go to sleep. Think about it, Chinese food and an hour later you're hungry again and looking for more food, Christmas goose and you fall asleep on the sofa while trying to watch the game.
KFG
If this is breaking a US law, then the US should work with that government to harmonize the laws.
Why?
KFG
The only thing it's good for is making defense contractors richer.
Couldn't we accomplish the same thing by just buying a lot of flak jackets from them, which would have the side of effect of, ya know, actually saving some lives?
KFG
Perhaps I may ask what you are qualified as, KFG?
.cleaning up our lifestyles and making an effort to preserve the environment. . .
Physics, one of the sciences, like chemsitry, that climatologists need expertise in to be climatologists, but aren't.
It would seem that you know a considerable amount more about climate change than the world's collective climatologists...
The world's colletive climatologists know they are clueless. The world's collective climatologists do not appear on your TV however, so perhaps you have missed them.
getting angry and swearing at people doesn't help at all
Fuck that shit.
. .
Something I'm all for.
. . . will help.
But not necessarily global warming; since we certainly didn't cause it (pretty much all climatologists, and nonclimatologists, are agreed on this, since the current round started about 12,000 years aqo, and you should be damned greatful it did); and may not be accelerating it.
KFG
In fact, it would be absurd to think we can't have an impact on our planet. . .
.we are changing the composition of the air. . .
Everything alive and a good many things that aren't have an impact on our planet. Some of them aren't even of our planet. That big ball of fire in the sky for instance.
Personally I'm rather unhappy about some of the impact we have on the planet. I'm actually a bit of an "Eco-Freak." But I'm perfectly content to oppose them on their own merits without without making shit up.
. .
The composition of the air changes.
KFG
. . .the fact remains that we do dump a lot of rubbish in the air, which may not affect the temperature of the planet, but it is affecting the lungs of its inhabitants.
Absofuckinlutely, and for the most part I'm agin it (so long as we're not getting all hysterical over the sudden discovery that animals fart. Just because we've only recently become aware of this fact doesn't mean that the great thundering herds of horses and bufflo didn't do it long, long ago).
So if we look at the root of the problem, (i.e. stop all the pollution) then if the "Global Warming" goes away, then we'll know that we caused it
No, we won't. The climate changes. Pretty much all the time. Even when we're not around to have an effect on it. And we don't understand it. Global warming will not only stop "all on it's own," it will even reverse, just because that's what it does. Just because that happens to correlate to something doesn't mean the things were causally connected.
Those of us who remember the 70s remember that the great "The Sky is Falling" scare back then was the sudden discovery that we're "overdue" for the next ice age and much of the cause of the current hysteria over global warming arose out of switching gears to "explain" why we aren't all freezing to death right now.
And the explanation is: "We haven't got a fucking clue," and all the fudged up computer "models" made up ad hoc out of anecdotal evidence to make the results come out the way we a priori decided they should won't get us any farther along the path of getting a clue.
Climatology as a predictive science is currently no more than scrying. The finding of patterns, after the fact, where in all likelyhood none actually exist. Fitting the data to the model instead of modeling the data. People do that all the time.
And science is supposed to be the guard against that sort of thing. And science only happens when you challange the model.
KFG
With these debates we currently discuss if global warming is real, what's making it happen and how we fix it.
Fix it? What on Earth makes you believe that a warming climate means that something is broken? The climate gets warmer, and colder, and warmer again. The Earth turns into a giant snowball, then goes all tropical.
And it was all happening before Homo Sapiens came on the scene and began thinking that he was in supreme command or something.
Sometimes the climate warms because that's what the climate does.
Maybe what we need to fix is our temporal parochialism.
KFG
. . .the evolution of climat.
Climate does not evolve. It changes.
KFG