Though it might have been improper for the school officials to take the phones and look through them, discovery laws relating to child porn are a lot different than you might expect. Evidence of Child Abuse (and surprisingly Elder Abuse) is something that is generally considered admissible in court cases regardless of how the evidence was uncovered. IANAL, but I believe laws were written this way to allow Police relatively more freedom to entrap abusers and pornographers that targeted children.
Back to the GGP post, the child pornography cases would not really be affected by the source of the evidence. However if the courts determine that there was nothing illegal about what these kids were doing, they might have a real shot to turn around and sue for privacy/civil rights violations or whatever. (again IANAL)
Thats exactly what it means! Zero tolerance policies are adopted so that people and organizations don't have to take responsibility for making decisions. Zero tolerance policies don't exist to protect the students/children, they exist to protect the school/state/whatever from liability.
I don't think you have to be 18+ to buy condoms at any Walmart or pharmacy.
Not yet, anyway. That day will come, I'm sure. Especially in abstinence-only education states.
I grew up in a backward town in Maine. We had a local pharmacy that would not sell condoms to minors without their parents written consent. This of course meant that they didn't sell very many to minors, and my town had the highest teen pregnancy rate in the county.
I get your point that insulation in home construction is very different from construction with moon dust, however I do feel like I should make this one point:
in practice of construction, there will always be some holes in it.
If there is one group of people that ought to be very talented at building things that don't have holes, its astronauts.
which just proves that scientists especially the 'social' brand are not real scientists. What a surprise.
Social science is unlike Physical science to be sure. Social scientists are not always able to draw perfect conclusions or make perfectly accurate predictions, but that is not to say they are not scientists. Keep in mind that the entities that make up social groups are in fact individuals. These individuals have their own motivations and their own decision making processes. When you consider the whole system, it is incredibly complex and impossible to fully understand.
This like programming code can be understood if all of the conditions can be understood. Granted, its not easy to understand how the complete code for a program will interact, and what effect that will have on hardware, and how that hardware may degrade etc. It is much harder to do that with social groups, because we can't open up a person to find out exactly what makes them tick. We can observe and postulate, and make increasingly better decisions. But those individuals are capable of acting in ways that outside observers simply cannot understand.
IMO a great comparison is Meteorology. Earth weather patterns are incredibly complex. Meteorologists make predictions about what patterns will likely develop, but there are simply too many variables to be perfectly precise.
No need for the hostility, its just part of what most of his humor is about. Look at other characters in Family Guy, they're all superficial and ridiculous stereotypes of various races, genders, nationalities, etc. Stewie is no closer to an actual Brit than Cleveland is to a black man, or Meg is to an awkward teenager. You could even consider those characters to be caricatures of stereotypes. American Dad is the same way.
I apologize if I offended you, I definitely did not intend to do so. I am most certainly not the bigot you are looking for.
On a similar note, can Seth McFarlane please learn british words/phrases properly, rather than just putting on a faux accent?!! Case and point: "fanny", "sweater", "sneaker" (words americans use, or have a different meaning for).
I can't speak with absolute certainty on this one, I've noticed these as well and my thought has always been that it is intended to be satirical. Americans have stereotypes of Brits that we like to see confirmed, little pretentious Stewie is one of them.
Who else could they go with? Verizon apparently turned them down, and the only other GSM carrier in the US in any case is T-Mobile. You think T-Mobile would magically be better than AT&T? Really?
Btw, tethering works great on my iPhone on Vodafone in Australia.
Yes (in some respects). T-Mobile's voice and data rates are significantly better than AT&T. T-Mobile doesn't care if you tether your phone; it is technically a violation of the ToS but they do not monitor or police it, and the don't make it difficult to do. T-Mobile's phone insurance plan is fairer and makes more sense. T-Mobile doesn't care what you do with your phone once you buy it.
The are that AT&T beats T-Mobile in is coverage. T-Mobile just doesn't have the same 3G coverage, though this depends on where you live.
Why Does just about every "FREE" App from the damn app store have advertisements? This does not make me want to purchase the full version. It makes me want to avoid apps by that developer completely.
Because developing Apps cost money. Thus developers need their apps to be a source of income.
If the app is free to you, it means that the developer has another source of income. This is most likely an advertisement, because advertisers will pay very good money to get adspace in applications and tools that people are likely to use (see: Google).
(b) You're correct - oxidation of one CH4 molecule produces one CO2 molecule and two H2O molecules.
Wait, your saying that using Methane as a fuel source will somehow create dihydrogen monoxide? And in twice the quantity that existed of mere methane?
Do you understand the danger? I suggest you educate yourself friend (http://www.dhmo.org/facts.html). Dihydrogen monoxide was consumed by every murderer on record at least 24 hours before their crimes! Releasing this much of the stuff in reckless!
Question: Did they earn it?
Answer: No. They played a game well and have received a cash prize.
No man does 53 billion dollar of work. He games the system so the incremental profits of the workers at the bottom of the pyramid trickle up into his pockets.
Seriously? So the people that found and build successful organizations cannot be said to have "worked" for their success. Gates may no longer be directly involved in production, he is no longer coding or developing, but that is not to say that he didn't "work". He earned his success.
He games the system so the incremental profits of the workers at the bottom of the pyramid trickle up into his pockets.
Its called owning a business. Every business owner ever makes their money from the product of their employees labor. This is just how employment works. This concept is so basic that I am wondering if there is some sort of deeper irony to your post that I am not grasping. Gates has simply managed to make his business work on a vastly larger scale than almost anyone else. In the process, his organization employees thousands of employees. Do you really think the world would be a better place without Microsoft?
If you disagree, you are wrong..
Logic and debate isn't really your strong suit is it?
The truth in the paragraph above is undeniable by clear-minded, rational people. However, fear of socialism fueled the Cold War, was the justification of the US war in Viet Nam, the US funding and training of death squad in Nicaragua, and is the rational for the current Cuba embargo. Oh, and fear of socialism is the primary undercurrent to keep healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
Um...What? You should loosen up your tinfoil hat and let some blood up there.
America is a fucked up mess.
Leave. Nobody's stopping you. I'm sure China or N. Korea could use some more moronic proletariat labor. Keep fighting the good fight Komrade!
Oh, and fear of socialism is the primary undercurrent to keep healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
Nope. The problem is people spewing idiotic vitriol that only serves to enrage and polarize people. Stop appealing to ghosts of McCarthy's past and slow down enough to realize that the US is a big place. People have different needs and desires, and we all expect our government to represent our bests interests.
healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
Closing your eyes and plugging your ears to the truth doesn't make it go away. Capitalism may be inefficient and has flaws, but its real. Real life is not like Capricorn 1.
I just find it odd that Slashdot has apparently made no effort to make their site compatible with a phone that represents something like 25% of the smartphone market.
Possibly it is because the kinds of people that frequent Slashdot are most likely the kinds of people that will have no problem modifying their equipment for their own needs. Its not Slashdot's fault that the iPhone is specifically built to prevent people from modifying their experience.
Judging from the anti-Apple hatred that is spewed here, it wouldn't surprise me if Slashdot didn't want to be associated with that specific 25% of the smartphone market.
Either I'm missing something in your motto, or you mis-typed..
Auc Caesar, Auc Nihil --- In the founding of the city Ceasar, in the founding of the city nothing?
Thinking maybe you meant to type "AUT Ceasar, AUT Nihil" which is more along the lines of "Either Ceasar or nothing" or more likely "All or nothing" roughly translated.
LOL. Evidently my friend, you are following on the proud tradition of the rarely discussed precursors of Grammar Nazi's, the Order of Grammar Centurians. Your probably the type of guy that corrects mispronunciations of "Veni Vidi Vici".
In all serious though, I was confused too. I had to use some google-fu to refresh my Latin.
...and came to the determination that the people who are using laptops to screw around are only hurting them selves.
My thought is that these people also de-value the degree and the reputation of the school, thereby making my degree less impressive regardless of how hard I worked or how successful I was. This kind of student behavior might be expected or tolerated by County Community College, but for a school like GWU this behavior damages their reputation.
Just an FYI, lecture halls usually have 100+ students (easily) and don't go beyond some human up front talking for the _whole_ period only stopping to take a breath from time to time.
It's not a classroom setting, it's a lecture.
I remember once asking my minor advisor how they handled a big lecture hall. My minor was classics, so this person usually lectured to huge classes in ancient history. She told me that she usually picked out 4 or 5 people that she thought would represent a range of comprehension (one smart person, one dumb person, and two or three in the middle). She would keep an eye on those few individuals to make sure that her lectures made sense and that people were following.
She joked that her goal was to explain things in a way that everyone understood, but would be satisfied if everyone but the dummy got it.
Seeing how this is college, I'm dumbfounded by the "nannying" going on here.
With respect friend, I'm not sure when you went to college. I graduated in 2006, "nannying" was exactly what was going on. My school was filled with kids that had graduated high school but had no idea what they wanted to do with their lives, and had no interest in growing up and being responsible. As a student that paid out a lot of money for the ability to attend those lectures, I expected that the other students in the room would show a little bit of respect to their peers. If myspace or youtube is so important that a person just can't bear to tear yourself away and be an adult for 90 minutes, they shouldn't bother coming into class. Or they should have sought out a more ADD friendly higher education option (like online universities).
Few things bothered me more than having my professors slow down their lecture or the class conversation to accommodate someone that wasn't paying full attention. Personally I found it disrespectful and selfish.
It is important to note that this varies greatly by individual as well. I recall reading studies done with volunteers that were cut off from any time reference. They lived alone for months at a time without any lighting reference, time pieces, TV/radio broadcasts, etc; their only contact with other people was through chat terminals and paper notes. These people tended toward 26-28 hour days, with longer sleeping and waking periods, and corresponding expansion of the other aspects of their circadian rhythms. Interestingly (and if I recall correctly) these people reported feeling less rested even after longer sleep.
The human circadian rhythm is an evolutionary produce of the earths 24ish hour rotation. But it is important to note that although this rhythm takes its cues from the outside world, it is not entirely dependent on the outside world. And of course, as with anything else, individuals do vary.
Sure I'll take that deal - WHEN YOU MAKE FIOS AVAILABLE IN MY @%&#! NEIGHBORHOOD!!!
Ditto. I actually receive promotional snail mail the tout the wonder of FIOS, but they do not offer it in my area. They actually mail advertisements to addresses they know they do not support.
"conclusive" in a meta-analysis? YOU'RE FREAKING BIASED!
Absolutely correct. No Psychologist worth their PhD would consider a meta analysis conclusive in any way. The whole point of a doing a meta is that for whatever reason the question you are trying to answer is not something you can explore experimentally, or as a precursor/proposal for an experimental protocol. You cannot by nature draw any definite conclusions from a meta, because you simply have not actually done anything.
One of my undergraduate theses was one the deleterious effects of the consumption of violent and aggressive media. I won't claim this Anderson is an absolute quack, he is in fact a very sharp guy with a huge body of work during his career. But one thing that was obvious even to a ignorant Psych undergrad was that he is definitely pushing an agenda.
This is an extreme example, but it counters your position.
Thats a great counter point, and I think you are absolutely right that in the case of harboring escaped slaves, violating those laws was the correct and moral thing to do. Unfortunately laws in the US do not often reflect morality. My point is that individuals that knowingly violate laws, either righteously or foolishly, have to be aware that they will face the consequences prescribed by the law, whether or not that law is itself unjust.
Your example is a little extreme, but your point is valid. The counter-counter point I would make is that there is a huge moral difference between knowingly violating copyright laws and fugitive slave laws. I can understand and even agree with a moral obligation to harbor and assist escaped slaves; even knowing the consequences, the risk of imprisonment is vastly outweighed by the potential good. As much as content wants to be free, I would have a hard time grasping the argument that there is some moral obligation to pirate content.
Well, when the system is set up so the little guy can never expect to win, while the fat cats have their way... one fellaor another may just crack, you know?
Except that in this case, it was the little guy that stole content from the fat cat, knowing that this particular kitty has claws and is not afraid to pursue ridiculous vendettas against random individuals. Regardless of whether current copyright laws are fair, it is the law (until we are able to effect change on it). Individuals that knowingly violate that law have no right to turn around and complain that the law is unfair. If someone breaks into my home and steals from me, I certainly would want the legal system to do everything possible to ensure that I get justice, and the robber gets boned.
It is unreasonable to expect that this person was completely unaware that what she was doing was illegal. I personally find it ridiculous that the copyright laws are structured the way they are, but until they are changed, anyone that knowingly breaks them is playing with fire. To include an obligatory car analogy, its like talking on your cell phone while driving without a seatbelt. Most of the time you will walk away just fine, having only inconvenienced other responsible drivers (or those that pay for their music); but every now and then you will suffer consequences for being so wildly irresponsible.
Yes, but the stereotype is that the care that Canadian citizens receive comes slower and is of poorer quality than we expect in the US. In reality, I'm sure that most of that comes from Canadian Doctors recommending comparatively more conservative treatment methods, which keeps costs down, which ensures that healthcare is affordable enough for the state to provide.
One reason American healthcare is so expensive is because it is possible for providers to pursue extravagant and unnecessary procedures in order to draw profit from insurers, like commuting in an 18 seater SUV when a small compact car will do (Oblig. car analogy). This drives up insurance costs, which makes it harder to afford.
We use a lot of students where I work. I can speak from experience that students, especially part-timers who like to squeeze in hours whenever they can, are without their badges and ID cards a lot. Either lost or left in the dorm room when they left for the day. As someone who is responsible for getting a temporary day-badge for my co-op whenever he forgets his, my first reaction was something like "cool! How can I get me one of those?".
I suppose I don't know exactly how this system works, and thus what kind of privacy implications might exist. But I can imagine the privacy implications here are no different than all the other personal information employers routinely collect about their new hires.
Slashdot Mirror
No, he said Lynx!
Though it might have been improper for the school officials to take the phones and look through them, discovery laws relating to child porn are a lot different than you might expect. Evidence of Child Abuse (and surprisingly Elder Abuse) is something that is generally considered admissible in court cases regardless of how the evidence was uncovered. IANAL, but I believe laws were written this way to allow Police relatively more freedom to entrap abusers and pornographers that targeted children.
Back to the GGP post, the child pornography cases would not really be affected by the source of the evidence. However if the courts determine that there was nothing illegal about what these kids were doing, they might have a real shot to turn around and sue for privacy/civil rights violations or whatever. (again IANAL)
Thats exactly what it means! Zero tolerance policies are adopted so that people and organizations don't have to take responsibility for making decisions. Zero tolerance policies don't exist to protect the students/children, they exist to protect the school/state/whatever from liability.
For god sake, think of the children!
Not yet, anyway. That day will come, I'm sure. Especially in abstinence-only education states.
I grew up in a backward town in Maine. We had a local pharmacy that would not sell condoms to minors without their parents written consent. This of course meant that they didn't sell very many to minors, and my town had the highest teen pregnancy rate in the county.
I get your point that insulation in home construction is very different from construction with moon dust, however I do feel like I should make this one point:
in practice of construction, there will always be some holes in it.
If there is one group of people that ought to be very talented at building things that don't have holes, its astronauts.
which just proves that scientists especially the 'social' brand are not real scientists. What a surprise.
Social science is unlike Physical science to be sure. Social scientists are not always able to draw perfect conclusions or make perfectly accurate predictions, but that is not to say they are not scientists. Keep in mind that the entities that make up social groups are in fact individuals. These individuals have their own motivations and their own decision making processes. When you consider the whole system, it is incredibly complex and impossible to fully understand.
This like programming code can be understood if all of the conditions can be understood. Granted, its not easy to understand how the complete code for a program will interact, and what effect that will have on hardware, and how that hardware may degrade etc. It is much harder to do that with social groups, because we can't open up a person to find out exactly what makes them tick. We can observe and postulate, and make increasingly better decisions. But those individuals are capable of acting in ways that outside observers simply cannot understand.
IMO a great comparison is Meteorology. Earth weather patterns are incredibly complex. Meteorologists make predictions about what patterns will likely develop, but there are simply too many variables to be perfectly precise.
No need for the hostility, its just part of what most of his humor is about. Look at other characters in Family Guy, they're all superficial and ridiculous stereotypes of various races, genders, nationalities, etc. Stewie is no closer to an actual Brit than Cleveland is to a black man, or Meg is to an awkward teenager. You could even consider those characters to be caricatures of stereotypes. American Dad is the same way.
I apologize if I offended you, I definitely did not intend to do so. I am most certainly not the bigot you are looking for.
On a similar note, can Seth McFarlane please learn british words/phrases properly, rather than just putting on a faux accent?!! Case and point: "fanny", "sweater", "sneaker" (words americans use, or have a different meaning for).
I can't speak with absolute certainty on this one, I've noticed these as well and my thought has always been that it is intended to be satirical. Americans have stereotypes of Brits that we like to see confirmed, little pretentious Stewie is one of them.
Who else could they go with? Verizon apparently turned them down, and the only other GSM carrier in the US in any case is T-Mobile. You think T-Mobile would magically be better than AT&T? Really?
Btw, tethering works great on my iPhone on Vodafone in Australia.
Yes (in some respects). T-Mobile's voice and data rates are significantly better than AT&T. T-Mobile doesn't care if you tether your phone; it is technically a violation of the ToS but they do not monitor or police it, and the don't make it difficult to do. T-Mobile's phone insurance plan is fairer and makes more sense. T-Mobile doesn't care what you do with your phone once you buy it.
The are that AT&T beats T-Mobile in is coverage. T-Mobile just doesn't have the same 3G coverage, though this depends on where you live.
Why Does just about every "FREE" App from the damn app store have advertisements? This does not make me want to purchase the full version. It makes me want to avoid apps by that developer completely.
Because developing Apps cost money. Thus developers need their apps to be a source of income.
If the app is free to you, it means that the developer has another source of income. This is most likely an advertisement, because advertisers will pay very good money to get adspace in applications and tools that people are likely to use (see: Google).
(b) You're correct - oxidation of one CH4 molecule produces one CO2 molecule and two H2O molecules.
Wait, your saying that using Methane as a fuel source will somehow create dihydrogen monoxide? And in twice the quantity that existed of mere methane?
Do you understand the danger? I suggest you educate yourself friend (http://www.dhmo.org/facts.html). Dihydrogen monoxide was consumed by every murderer on record at least 24 hours before their crimes! Releasing this much of the stuff in reckless!
Question: Did they earn it? Answer: No. They played a game well and have received a cash prize. No man does 53 billion dollar of work. He games the system so the incremental profits of the workers at the bottom of the pyramid trickle up into his pockets.
Seriously? So the people that found and build successful organizations cannot be said to have "worked" for their success. Gates may no longer be directly involved in production, he is no longer coding or developing, but that is not to say that he didn't "work". He earned his success.
He games the system so the incremental profits of the workers at the bottom of the pyramid trickle up into his pockets.
Its called owning a business. Every business owner ever makes their money from the product of their employees labor. This is just how employment works. This concept is so basic that I am wondering if there is some sort of deeper irony to your post that I am not grasping. Gates has simply managed to make his business work on a vastly larger scale than almost anyone else. In the process, his organization employees thousands of employees. Do you really think the world would be a better place without Microsoft?
If you disagree, you are wrong. .
Logic and debate isn't really your strong suit is it?
The truth in the paragraph above is undeniable by clear-minded, rational people. However, fear of socialism fueled the Cold War, was the justification of the US war in Viet Nam, the US funding and training of death squad in Nicaragua, and is the rational for the current Cuba embargo. Oh, and fear of socialism is the primary undercurrent to keep healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
Um...What? You should loosen up your tinfoil hat and let some blood up there.
America is a fucked up mess.
Leave. Nobody's stopping you. I'm sure China or N. Korea could use some more moronic proletariat labor. Keep fighting the good fight Komrade!
Oh, and fear of socialism is the primary undercurrent to keep healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
Nope. The problem is people spewing idiotic vitriol that only serves to enrage and polarize people. Stop appealing to ghosts of McCarthy's past and slow down enough to realize that the US is a big place. People have different needs and desires, and we all expect our government to represent our bests interests.
healthcare in America as a luxury only the wealthy can afford.
(psst! I think you forgot about all of our social welfare programs) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medicaid
Capitalism is a fallacy.
Closing your eyes and plugging your ears to the truth doesn't make it go away. Capitalism may be inefficient and has flaws, but its real. Real life is not like Capricorn 1.
I just find it odd that Slashdot has apparently made no effort to make their site compatible with a phone that represents something like 25% of the smartphone market.
Possibly it is because the kinds of people that frequent Slashdot are most likely the kinds of people that will have no problem modifying their equipment for their own needs. Its not Slashdot's fault that the iPhone is specifically built to prevent people from modifying their experience.
Judging from the anti-Apple hatred that is spewed here, it wouldn't surprise me if Slashdot didn't want to be associated with that specific 25% of the smartphone market.
Either I'm missing something in your motto, or you mis-typed.. Auc Caesar, Auc Nihil --- In the founding of the city Ceasar, in the founding of the city nothing? Thinking maybe you meant to type "AUT Ceasar, AUT Nihil" which is more along the lines of "Either Ceasar or nothing" or more likely "All or nothing" roughly translated.
LOL. Evidently my friend, you are following on the proud tradition of the rarely discussed precursors of Grammar Nazi's, the Order of Grammar Centurians. Your probably the type of guy that corrects mispronunciations of "Veni Vidi Vici".
In all serious though, I was confused too. I had to use some google-fu to refresh my Latin.
...and came to the determination that the people who are using laptops to screw around are only hurting them selves.
My thought is that these people also de-value the degree and the reputation of the school, thereby making my degree less impressive regardless of how hard I worked or how successful I was. This kind of student behavior might be expected or tolerated by County Community College, but for a school like GWU this behavior damages their reputation.
Just an FYI, lecture halls usually have 100+ students (easily) and don't go beyond some human up front talking for the _whole_ period only stopping to take a breath from time to time.
It's not a classroom setting, it's a lecture.
I remember once asking my minor advisor how they handled a big lecture hall. My minor was classics, so this person usually lectured to huge classes in ancient history. She told me that she usually picked out 4 or 5 people that she thought would represent a range of comprehension (one smart person, one dumb person, and two or three in the middle). She would keep an eye on those few individuals to make sure that her lectures made sense and that people were following.
She joked that her goal was to explain things in a way that everyone understood, but would be satisfied if everyone but the dummy got it.
Seeing how this is college, I'm dumbfounded by the "nannying" going on here.
With respect friend, I'm not sure when you went to college. I graduated in 2006, "nannying" was exactly what was going on. My school was filled with kids that had graduated high school but had no idea what they wanted to do with their lives, and had no interest in growing up and being responsible. As a student that paid out a lot of money for the ability to attend those lectures, I expected that the other students in the room would show a little bit of respect to their peers. If myspace or youtube is so important that a person just can't bear to tear yourself away and be an adult for 90 minutes, they shouldn't bother coming into class. Or they should have sought out a more ADD friendly higher education option (like online universities).
Few things bothered me more than having my professors slow down their lecture or the class conversation to accommodate someone that wasn't paying full attention. Personally I found it disrespectful and selfish.
Probably because an Earth day is 24 hours long, but the body's day (when underexposed to outside lighting schedules) is 24 hours 6 minutes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm
It is important to note that this varies greatly by individual as well. I recall reading studies done with volunteers that were cut off from any time reference. They lived alone for months at a time without any lighting reference, time pieces, TV/radio broadcasts, etc; their only contact with other people was through chat terminals and paper notes. These people tended toward 26-28 hour days, with longer sleeping and waking periods, and corresponding expansion of the other aspects of their circadian rhythms. Interestingly (and if I recall correctly) these people reported feeling less rested even after longer sleep.
The human circadian rhythm is an evolutionary produce of the earths 24ish hour rotation. But it is important to note that although this rhythm takes its cues from the outside world, it is not entirely dependent on the outside world. And of course, as with anything else, individuals do vary.
Sure I'll take that deal - WHEN YOU MAKE FIOS AVAILABLE IN MY @%&#! NEIGHBORHOOD!!!
Ditto. I actually receive promotional snail mail the tout the wonder of FIOS, but they do not offer it in my area. They actually mail advertisements to addresses they know they do not support.
Violent bestiality with a minor?
Pics or it didn't happen.
"conclusive" in a meta-analysis? YOU'RE FREAKING BIASED!
Absolutely correct. No Psychologist worth their PhD would consider a meta analysis conclusive in any way. The whole point of a doing a meta is that for whatever reason the question you are trying to answer is not something you can explore experimentally, or as a precursor/proposal for an experimental protocol. You cannot by nature draw any definite conclusions from a meta, because you simply have not actually done anything.
One of my undergraduate theses was one the deleterious effects of the consumption of violent and aggressive media. I won't claim this Anderson is an absolute quack, he is in fact a very sharp guy with a huge body of work during his career. But one thing that was obvious even to a ignorant Psych undergrad was that he is definitely pushing an agenda.
This is an extreme example, but it counters your position.
Thats a great counter point, and I think you are absolutely right that in the case of harboring escaped slaves, violating those laws was the correct and moral thing to do. Unfortunately laws in the US do not often reflect morality. My point is that individuals that knowingly violate laws, either righteously or foolishly, have to be aware that they will face the consequences prescribed by the law, whether or not that law is itself unjust.
Your example is a little extreme, but your point is valid. The counter-counter point I would make is that there is a huge moral difference between knowingly violating copyright laws and fugitive slave laws. I can understand and even agree with a moral obligation to harbor and assist escaped slaves; even knowing the consequences, the risk of imprisonment is vastly outweighed by the potential good. As much as content wants to be free, I would have a hard time grasping the argument that there is some moral obligation to pirate content.
Well, when the system is set up so the little guy can never expect to win, while the fat cats have their way... one fella or another may just crack, you know?
Except that in this case, it was the little guy that stole content from the fat cat, knowing that this particular kitty has claws and is not afraid to pursue ridiculous vendettas against random individuals. Regardless of whether current copyright laws are fair, it is the law (until we are able to effect change on it). Individuals that knowingly violate that law have no right to turn around and complain that the law is unfair. If someone breaks into my home and steals from me, I certainly would want the legal system to do everything possible to ensure that I get justice, and the robber gets boned.
It is unreasonable to expect that this person was completely unaware that what she was doing was illegal. I personally find it ridiculous that the copyright laws are structured the way they are, but until they are changed, anyone that knowingly breaks them is playing with fire. To include an obligatory car analogy, its like talking on your cell phone while driving without a seatbelt. Most of the time you will walk away just fine, having only inconvenienced other responsible drivers (or those that pay for their music); but every now and then you will suffer consequences for being so wildly irresponsible.
Yes, but the stereotype is that the care that Canadian citizens receive comes slower and is of poorer quality than we expect in the US. In reality, I'm sure that most of that comes from Canadian Doctors recommending comparatively more conservative treatment methods, which keeps costs down, which ensures that healthcare is affordable enough for the state to provide.
One reason American healthcare is so expensive is because it is possible for providers to pursue extravagant and unnecessary procedures in order to draw profit from insurers, like commuting in an 18 seater SUV when a small compact car will do (Oblig. car analogy). This drives up insurance costs, which makes it harder to afford.
We use a lot of students where I work. I can speak from experience that students, especially part-timers who like to squeeze in hours whenever they can, are without their badges and ID cards a lot. Either lost or left in the dorm room when they left for the day. As someone who is responsible for getting a temporary day-badge for my co-op whenever he forgets his, my first reaction was something like "cool! How can I get me one of those?".
I suppose I don't know exactly how this system works, and thus what kind of privacy implications might exist. But I can imagine the privacy implications here are no different than all the other personal information employers routinely collect about their new hires.