Every adult in NOLA had a lifetime to work to escape or to prepare for disaster. Gulf hurricanes are no surprise, and there is no reason except sentiment ("I love my slum!") to cling to the vulnerable parts of New Orleans.
"but if they could afford a safer place they'd choose it."
Don't underestimate denial and stupidity. Most of the folks on the bottom of society aren't there by accident.
For countries to grow, they must each have an Industrial Revolution where they compete with the tools available. That means low wages and often child labor. The alternative is to lose, not to bypass the process and leap straight to a modern world with union benefits in a socialist utopia.
"If you can't see past anb automobile in your life, you won't have a life to live much past 2025."
Citation very much needed!
Don't confuse what we drive today with what will be available that far in the future. As a mechanic, I'll be having Big Fun with the variety of powerplants and drivetrains that will be mature by then. My old Harley will still run on available fuels such as alcohol (conversion takes a couple of hours and the alky carb rebuild kit), as will my other techno-fossils. PHEV options will be common, and I'll enjoy the electrical power on my hybrid-or PHEV work truck (Eaton is doing hybrid F-550s now.)
"Will we tag this as "Funny" 10 years from now? I certainly hope so, but my doubt grows..."
The prospect of peaceful change for the better is increasingly remote. That's why folks like Joe Stack who lash out are often (now) regarded as heroes, when that would have been almost unthinkable in the past. As provocation increases, the fringe will blow back...first.
The seller of a vehicle typically requires full disclosure of drivers license info, etc, as part of the transaction if the vehicle is financed. Using technology to locate the vehicle in question merely assists finding it and isn't an intrusion into the life of the driver.
If you don't want auto dealers to have your info, buy cheaper vehicles for cash from a private party. There are lots of other good reasons to do this, like avoiding debt.
Plate scanning systems are just a fast way to do what repo folks have been doing for years. They still need to verify the VIN, and in some areas present Claim and Delivery paperwork to repo a vehicle.
Lots of car buyers try to rip off dealers, and instead of working out payments (most dealers would rather have incoming money than a car sitting on the lot) they disappear with the car.
Plate scanners also offer a way to catch uninsured drivers (= "people who don't care if they can pay for the damage they cause when they run into the rest of us) and tax scofflaws.
"Oh Powers that Be, can we please have a hate speech mod so we can still browse at -1 for moderating purposes and not have to read through this crap?"
Any Hate Speech mod option will be exploited by those who disagree with criticisms of their sacred cows.
The general category of Troll is understood to mean not only Troll, but "stuff that hurts my feelings so I mod it down like the pouting little bitch that I am".
If you are too sensitive to read a "nigger" post now and then, the problem is not the post, it is that you are too sensitive for the internet. Why should someone ELSE have to mod a post down so those of exquisitely delicate sensibilities don't see it?
"Adventure" is what you have when you are too lazy to plan for the long term. We don't need humans in space for other than entertainment reasons at this point in time. Our robots and other remotely operated systems which are preconditions for effective human exploitation of space need vastly more development, and the benefits of making these systems clearly outweigh the entertainment value of sending humans so early.
Master space with spacefaring machines, exploit the expendability of those machines to gain RAPID development cycles, then send humans for their own amusement after the way has been paved.
The old idea of "humans first" made sense when humans were utterly expendable and wooden ships were cheap. Those days are over. Humans burden their machines by requiring life support systems, resources, and the return of expeditionary systems to bring humans back. We have a thousand years if we like to perfect the machines we must have anyway. Build and deploy the machines first, and perfect VR suits for those who want to interact with new environments. There will always be a barrier between human and the utterly hostile off-world environment, be it the skin of a space suit or a data link back to Earth.
"Pretty soon you're up to some serious money. I doubt you could build a credible threat that is manufacturable and usable in a battlefield environment for less than $100k a copy."
That's why Explosively Formed Projectiles are so popular. Who needs a drone when, with basic shop tools, it is easy to produce them in BULK from common materials in a garage-sized shop?
The reason we haven't had LOTS of unconventional attacks in CONUS is (obviously) because (most of) our opponents don't want to mobilize US public opinion and would rather exploit it by inflicting casualties far, far away. The Viet Cong were smart enough to "get" this idea decades ago, and they could certainly have gotten some Caucasian Commies (don't forget, this was in the ancient time of the Cold War) to launch US ops if they were so motivated.
"That is subjective and further irrelevant because the question is not whether you wanted Vista on the machine but whether the purchaser wants Vista on the machine. To her and millions of others, Vista was very undesirable."
Sometimes a harsh response is appropriate:
Cry me a river. Don't like the terms, don't fucking buy Windows. Windows terms too inconvenient? Don't fucking buy Windows. Refuse to learn a different OS? Refuse to learn how to route around inconvenience? Then tough shit.
Want XP? Buy a retail copy and run it in a VM. Too lazy to learn? Then you don't actually NEED XP so piss off. Apple wants your business, and Linux is available if you have any initiative at all.
Windows terms should become ever more onerous and inconvenient, and those who favor Free and Open software should welcome such moves by their enemies. (It is perfectly reasonable to consider MSFT an enemy, despite those who consider it an enemy for illogical reasons.)
"Stereotypically, everyone hates the Americans for being stupid and hateful and Sterotypically Americans are xenophobes, and yet everyone seems to be doing business with us when it's profitable."
Shit, we killed over a million Vietnamese a few decades back, and now Intel had a chip fab there. Given the overall results, the US got all the capitalist outcomes it wanted, got Viet Nam as a barrier to Chinese expansion (see 'Sino-Vietnamese War"), and did it without winning the war. Practicality and profit motivate sensible people quite strongly.
Properly shooting a rifle and leading a tiny, distant point target accurately enough to hit it with a single shot (as opposed to tracers, for example) are much different.
Little drones don't carry much, hence aren't much threat and not worth frothing over. If someone wants to blow up stuff and kill people, all they need is general mechanical knowledge and a few hand tools. (I won't be more specific, those interested can do their homework!)
For military area defense, we should develop directed energy weapons because in addition to UAVs, they can work on rockets, artillery, missiles, aircraft, and ground targets.
"Get rid of career Politicians is the only solution."
Term limits are only an incentive to "make hay while the sun shines". A lame duck, not having the incentive of winning a second election, has even less accountabilty.
Term limits = "I'm too lazy to be politically active, so don't let anyone choose the same representative more than once".
Want to throw the bums out? Have your own "Tea Party"! It is even scaring the weakling incumbents from running for election.
Slashdot Mirror
"I root your receptionist to get the proverbial foot in the door. "
She is protected by Security through Fugliness. Root at own risk.
Every adult in NOLA had a lifetime to work to escape or to prepare for disaster. Gulf hurricanes are no surprise, and there is no reason except sentiment ("I love my slum!") to cling to the vulnerable parts of New Orleans.
"but if they could afford a safer place they'd choose it."
Don't underestimate denial and stupidity. Most of the folks on the bottom of society aren't there by accident.
I take it that I offended more than one "PLB". Thank you for proving my point(s), which is what I expected.
If the Hate Speech/Crimethink category takes off, it'll be well worth browsing those posts.
For countries to grow, they must each have an Industrial Revolution where they compete with the tools available. That means low wages and often child labor. The alternative is to lose, not to bypass the process and leap straight to a modern world with union benefits in a socialist utopia.
"If you can't see past anb automobile in your life, you won't have a life to live much past 2025."
Citation very much needed!
Don't confuse what we drive today with what will be available that far in the future. As a mechanic, I'll be having Big Fun with the variety of powerplants and drivetrains that will be mature by then. My old Harley will still run on available fuels such as alcohol (conversion takes a couple of hours and the alky carb rebuild kit), as will my other techno-fossils. PHEV options will be common, and I'll enjoy the electrical power on my hybrid-or PHEV work truck (Eaton is doing hybrid F-550s now.)
Good luck with that when you try to take the one I'm holding, which requires assaulting me, which puts me in fear for my life.
"Will we tag this as "Funny" 10 years from now? I certainly hope so, but my doubt grows..."
The prospect of peaceful change for the better is increasingly remote. That's why folks like Joe Stack who lash out are often (now) regarded as heroes, when that would have been almost unthinkable in the past. As provocation increases, the fringe will blow back...first.
The seller of a vehicle typically requires full disclosure of drivers license info, etc, as part of the transaction if the vehicle is financed. Using technology to locate the vehicle in question merely assists finding it and isn't an intrusion into the life of the driver.
If you don't want auto dealers to have your info, buy cheaper vehicles for cash from a private party. There are lots of other good reasons to do this, like avoiding debt.
Religionists are against booze, those disagreeing with religion are going to Hell, might as well give them an express ticket.
That Prohibition and the poisoning campaign happened prove this post is no troll.
Plate scanning systems are just a fast way to do what repo folks have been doing for years. They still need to verify the VIN, and in some areas present Claim and Delivery paperwork to repo a vehicle.
Lots of car buyers try to rip off dealers, and instead of working out payments (most dealers would rather have incoming money than a car sitting on the lot) they disappear with the car.
Plate scanners also offer a way to catch uninsured drivers (= "people who don't care if they can pay for the damage they cause when they run into the rest of us) and tax scofflaws.
"Oh Powers that Be, can we please have a hate speech mod so we can still browse at -1 for moderating purposes and not have to read through this crap?"
Any Hate Speech mod option will be exploited by those who disagree with criticisms of their sacred cows.
The general category of Troll is understood to mean not only Troll, but "stuff that hurts my feelings so I mod it down like the pouting little bitch that I am".
If you are too sensitive to read a "nigger" post now and then, the problem is not the post, it is that you are too sensitive for the internet. Why should someone ELSE have to mod a post down so those of exquisitely delicate sensibilities don't see it?
"Adventure" is what you have when you are too lazy to plan for the long term. We don't need humans in space for other than entertainment reasons at this point in time. Our robots and other remotely operated systems which are preconditions for effective human exploitation of space need vastly more development, and the benefits of making these systems clearly outweigh the entertainment value of sending humans so early.
Master space with spacefaring machines, exploit the expendability of those machines to gain RAPID development cycles, then send humans for their own amusement after the way has been paved.
The old idea of "humans first" made sense when humans were utterly expendable and wooden ships were cheap. Those days are over. Humans burden their machines by requiring life support systems, resources, and the return of expeditionary systems to bring humans back. We have a thousand years if we like to perfect the machines we must have anyway. Build and deploy the machines first, and perfect VR suits for those who want to interact with new environments. There will always be a barrier between human and the utterly hostile off-world environment, be it the skin of a space suit or a data link back to Earth.
"Pretty soon you're up to some serious money. I doubt you could build a credible threat that is manufacturable and usable in a battlefield environment for less than $100k a copy."
That's why Explosively Formed Projectiles are so popular. Who needs a drone when, with basic shop tools, it is easy to produce them in BULK from common materials in a garage-sized shop?
The reason we haven't had LOTS of unconventional attacks in CONUS is (obviously) because (most of) our opponents don't want to mobilize US public opinion and would rather exploit it by inflicting casualties far, far away. The Viet Cong were smart enough to "get" this idea decades ago, and they could certainly have gotten some Caucasian Commies (don't forget, this was in the ancient time of the Cold War) to launch US ops if they were so motivated.
"That is subjective and further irrelevant because the question is not whether you wanted Vista on the machine but whether the purchaser wants Vista on the machine. To her and millions of others, Vista was very undesirable."
Sometimes a harsh response is appropriate:
Cry me a river. Don't like the terms, don't fucking buy Windows. Windows terms too inconvenient? Don't fucking buy Windows.
Refuse to learn a different OS? Refuse to learn how to route around inconvenience? Then tough shit.
Want XP? Buy a retail copy and run it in a VM. Too lazy to learn? Then you don't actually NEED XP so piss off. Apple wants your business, and Linux is available if you have any initiative at all.
Windows terms should become ever more onerous and inconvenient, and those who favor Free and Open software should welcome such moves by their enemies.
(It is perfectly reasonable to consider MSFT an enemy, despite those who consider it an enemy for illogical reasons.)
"When was the last time you bought a new computer?"
My abacus had spare beads, does that count?
"Stereotypically, everyone hates the Americans for being stupid and hateful and Sterotypically Americans are xenophobes, and yet everyone seems to be doing business with us when it's profitable."
Shit, we killed over a million Vietnamese a few decades back, and now Intel had a chip fab there. Given the overall results, the US got all the capitalist outcomes it wanted, got Viet Nam as a barrier to Chinese expansion (see 'Sino-Vietnamese War"), and did it without winning the war.
Practicality and profit motivate sensible people quite strongly.
ROFLPIMP! Good luck with that.
Properly shooting a rifle and leading a tiny, distant point target accurately enough to hit it with a single shot (as opposed to tracers, for example)
are much different.
Little drones don't carry much, hence aren't much threat and not worth frothing over. If someone wants to blow up stuff and kill people, all they need is general mechanical knowledge and a few hand tools. (I won't be more specific, those interested can do their homework!)
For military area defense, we should develop directed energy weapons because in addition to UAVs, they can work on rockets, artillery, missiles, aircraft, and ground targets.
"Get rid of career Politicians is the only solution."
Term limits are only an incentive to "make hay while the sun shines". A lame duck, not having the incentive of winning a second election, has even less accountabilty.
Term limits = "I'm too lazy to be politically active, so don't let anyone choose the same representative more than once".
Want to throw the bums out? Have your own "Tea Party"! It is even scaring the weakling incumbents from running for election.
"*The distorted Protestant American version of the faith."
Religions should be judged by practice, not theory.
Besides the obvious fact they are fantastic nonsense, the superstitions of the desert are only useful for facilitating oppression and violence.
"Stupid mods, read first: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Controversies_about_the_word_"niggardly"
To quote a famous African-American actor:
"ENGLISH, MOTHERFUCKER! DO-YOU-SPEAK-IT?"
We what we need are actual cyber attacks to build system immunity, just as virus and malware attack coerce countermeasures.
"The problem, of course, is that nothing can stand up to big government."
Why stand up to it when it's for sale?
That's disgusting.
The only ethical thing to do is crowdsource the monitoring via Chatroulette.
Time to play the pedo card every time there is such a search. :)
"I've got no problem with killing an animal in a fair fight while respecting the animal. It's natural carnivore behavior."
"Fairness" has nothing to do with the animal kingdom and is purely a human fantasy.
If animal competition were "fair", the slowest zebra wouldn't be lion shit because the lion would want a fair fight instead of dinner.