When product cycles are short and the stuff you "own" is obsolete a couple of years after you buy it, there really isn't any difference between owning and renting (except for paying up-front when you own)...
You kids and your newfangled electronics. I point my Kodak Super-8 at the TV and develop the film in my own darkroom. You whippersnappers with your Super-8s! In my day, we sketched stuff on pads of paper and flipped through it whenever we wanted to watch something. But of course that takes too much talent and effort for you techno-weenies...
Cause we all know Al Gore invented it!!:-) Well, he may not have invented the Internet, but he did champion the funding for it through Congress at a time when few people had even heard of it yet. And, in fact, he's never claimed anything more than that, despite Republican misinformation to the contrary...
Is it so bad to learn a little self control? That statement is going to irritate me all day now. I guess you could say that anyone who runs afoul of despots is guilty of not exercising enough "self control".
Actually I think I did run into some of that once. My guess is that they really want us to run their unnecessary software, which I have no doubt is loaded with spyware. The absurdity here is that the router that my cable modem directly connects to is also Linux-based, but they don't care about that as long as you're hosting their spyware/adware on the desktop.
I've never had any problems at all running Linux with Comcast. Of course, I don't run their software either, and probably wouldn't even if I were running Windows. To Linux it's just an ethernet connection, and if you have the usual necessary info (e.g., DNS server addresses) you're fine. When they install it they do make a big thing about Linux not being "supported", but there's really nothing you'll ever need their "support" for. The connection is either up or it isn't.
The frustose is from Corn Syrup, not sugar cane. To make high-fructose corn syrup, fructose content is actually fortified by treating the syrup with an enzyme that converts some of the glucose into more fructose. That is, the "high fructose" is by design.
Cane (or beet) sugar, sucrose, is a molecule consisting of a fructose and a glucose molecule joined together. It splits up into its component sugars (50% fructose) pretty much as soon as it hits your saliva and gastric juices.
Honey is also mostly fructose and glucose, but they're not bonded together as in sucrose. Think of it as predigested table sugar, with a nice flavor and a few other nutrients thrown in...
Just about every board that wasn't explicitly set up as a conservative site has drifted "leftward" lately, particularly technically and scientifically oriented ones. Is this a vast liberal conspiracy, or just another case of facts speaking for themselves?
Liberals would like to see increased government regulation in response to the danger of global climate change. It's part of their agenda. And it's Bush's job as a Republican and (sometimes) a conservative to oppose these plans. That hits the nail right on the head. It has long appeared to me that a good part of the "conservative agenda" is simply to offend "liberals", a category of people that includes just about everyone who believes in responsible governance and rational approaches to problems. Science, Reason, and the rule of law are bad, because they constrain arbitrary power and place limits on its use to reward friends and patrons and to punish enemies.
And please, conservatives, drop the "small government" mantra. Everyone knows by now that it's a load of hypocritical crap.
1) As Surgeon General, he's part of the administration. Therefore, this is not censorship. Did he not take an oath of office, or has the oath been changed to vow only allegiance to the President and his political party? Your suggestion that members of the executive branch of government have no other duty than personal loyalty to the President is absurd and repugnant, but about par for conservatives these days.
2) The Surgeon General is an MD, not a climatologist. Having an opinion he feels strongly about doesn't make him a) an expert or b) entitled to a public forum on said opinion. Go back and read the article. He was invited to a meeting on the subject where everyone else in attendance was a clueless idiot, and he attempted to explain a few fundamentals to them. Of course, they didn't want to hear about the science from him or anyone else. Nothing about proferring an expert opinion in a public forum.
what actually happened was that Surgeon Generals under the past FOUR presidents described how they were censored. They also said that the level of interference in the past was nowhere near as pervasive as it has been during Bush's reign (except maybe with AIDS in the 80s, when Reagan thought he had an opportunity to take a big bite out of the population of gay men). Clinton didn't help, either, when he ignored recommendations that clean needles be distributed to drug addicts. That would've made good policy, and is another example of political considerations trumping public health.
BTW... Are there any Bush fans at all not posting as AC?
people with no real knowledge on the subject (on both sides) persist in making declarations as if they were experts. Unfortunately, the decisions that must be made (or not made) in response to complex problems are usually in the hands of such people. Some of them have the ability and motivation to seek out and listen to the advice of those who do know the science. Others, not so much.
Of course, if we continue to elect politicians who make decisions based on theology instead of science... It's not just theology vs. science, although that's a part of it. The Republicans and BushCo are waging a war on Reason in general. Why? Because for power to be absolute, it has to be arbitrary. The more that policy is based on finding rational, efficient solutions to problems, the more the solutions to those problems will be in the hands of scientists, engineers, and experts. In that kind of environment, it's harder to base your actions on where the money is coming from, who your friends are, or even just your personal whims. It's harder to feel truly powerful - and to enjoy the fruits of that power - when most of your decisions are constrained by reason and science.
why would anyone object to the measures that are being suggested? Unless they owned a coal mine of course... I think you've answered your own question. The coal industry is into the Bush administration in a big way.
The argument I like to use is that it's not just "the Government" that is spying on you; it's whoever the Government authorizes to watch you. Whoever that is can have all sorts of motivations that have nothing to do with the enforcement of legitimate laws. You can be messed with because of your political opinions or affiliations, or because someone with authority has a personal vendetta against you. Maybe someone "on the force" would like to buy your house for less than you'd like to sell it, or maybe your kid is dating the wrong person's daughter, or maybe someone with connections wants your job. It could be anything.
The "if you have nothing to hide" argument supposes a great deal of trust in not only the Government, but also all of the people empowered by it. It never ceases to amaze me that it is always conservatives - who otherwise profess to abhor "big government" - who advance it.
That really makes you angry, doesn't it? No, but before I get into trouble again... Are there any other companies that are above criticism in this forum, regardless of their policies or how they treat their customers? I know about Google, but I don't want to wreck my Karma by inadvertantly offending someone else's True Believers.
But really, if you give any company a standing pass to screw you up the ass, they're just going to keep doing it...
I was wondering how many "Apple can do no wrong" posts I'd find here, and I haven't been disappointed.
I have no doubt that if Apple announced that it would collect information on your contacts when you send in the phone, then kidnap three of them at random and hold them for ransom, there would be people here saying it's a perfectly reasonable business practice. After all, Apple is in business to make money, and how can we expect them to pass on an opportuniity like that?
BTW, my GF just discovered that her 3-year old iPod Mini is now a $200 paperweight because they don't even offer the battery replacement for it anymore...
And yet by limiting government power you also limit the corporations interest in government and their ability to abuse that power. If you think that a corporate-dominated government has any interest whatsoever in limiting its own power (except with respect to its corporate overlords), just take a look around. Throw in organized religion as a partner, and you've scored the absolutist trifecta.
Yet another case of fraud for profit- and I'm sure the libertarians are all for this particular deregulation. Libertarianism has always had the contradiction that private power would be unchecked and therefore will tend toward not only market power and monopoly, but the hijacking of government power as well. That is, a government that is too weak or indifferent to limit the concentration of private power will soon be the bitch of that power, and once that happens it won't remain small and unobtrusive for long. In fact, it's Mussolini's own definition of Fascism.
Godwin's law. Not an issue, since I wasn't comparing any contemporary ideology to Nazism, but merely speculating on the perceptions of people who lived under that very real regime in that very real time. Or are you taking "Godwin's Law" one step further by denying that these things ever happened?
I'll deal with "Godwin's Law" another time. Suffice it for now to say that it smells like an effort among rightists to void the historical record of what indeed does happen when the power of the state marries corporate and religious power, to paraphrase Mussolini. But I suppose he is of no historical significance, either.
I could look at my tax bill and see how free I am, I guess. Or you could look at how it's spent. Be thankful (!) that our current government is deferring the cost of its Holy War to your children, and not you. I doubt they could have started it otherwise...
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When product cycles are short and the stuff you "own" is obsolete a couple of years after you buy it, there really isn't any difference between owning and renting (except for paying up-front when you own)...
It's bound to be better than a $150 Vista laptop, though...
Closed source is like a box of chocolates - You don't know what you're gonna get...
He's apparently never read the EULAs for his Microsoft ware. Now that is scary stuff...
Actually I think I did run into some of that once. My guess is that they really want us to run their unnecessary software, which I have no doubt is loaded with spyware. The absurdity here is that the router that my cable modem directly connects to is also Linux-based, but they don't care about that as long as you're hosting their spyware/adware on the desktop.
I've never had any problems at all running Linux with Comcast. Of course, I don't run their software either, and probably wouldn't even if I were running Windows. To Linux it's just an ethernet connection, and if you have the usual necessary info (e.g., DNS server addresses) you're fine. When they install it they do make a big thing about Linux not being "supported", but there's really nothing you'll ever need their "support" for. The connection is either up or it isn't.
Cane (or beet) sugar, sucrose, is a molecule consisting of a fructose and a glucose molecule joined together. It splits up into its component sugars (50% fructose) pretty much as soon as it hits your saliva and gastric juices.
Honey is also mostly fructose and glucose, but they're not bonded together as in sucrose. Think of it as predigested table sugar, with a nice flavor and a few other nutrients thrown in...
And don't forget the health benefits of sludge, either!
Just about every board that wasn't explicitly set up as a conservative site has drifted "leftward" lately, particularly technically and scientifically oriented ones. Is this a vast liberal conspiracy, or just another case of facts speaking for themselves?
And please, conservatives, drop the "small government" mantra. Everyone knows by now that it's a load of hypocritical crap.
BTW... Are there any Bush fans at all not posting as AC?
The argument I like to use is that it's not just "the Government" that is spying on you; it's whoever the Government authorizes to watch you. Whoever that is can have all sorts of motivations that have nothing to do with the enforcement of legitimate laws. You can be messed with because of your political opinions or affiliations, or because someone with authority has a personal vendetta against you. Maybe someone "on the force" would like to buy your house for less than you'd like to sell it, or maybe your kid is dating the wrong person's daughter, or maybe someone with connections wants your job. It could be anything.
The "if you have nothing to hide" argument supposes a great deal of trust in not only the Government, but also all of the people empowered by it. It never ceases to amaze me that it is always conservatives - who otherwise profess to abhor "big government" - who advance it.
But really, if you give any company a standing pass to screw you up the ass, they're just going to keep doing it...
I was wondering how many "Apple can do no wrong" posts I'd find here, and I haven't been disappointed.
I have no doubt that if Apple announced that it would collect information on your contacts when you send in the phone, then kidnap three of them at random and hold them for ransom, there would be people here saying it's a perfectly reasonable business practice. After all, Apple is in business to make money, and how can we expect them to pass on an opportuniity like that?
BTW, my GF just discovered that her 3-year old iPod Mini is now a $200 paperweight because they don't even offer the battery replacement for it anymore...
Please don't do this during my flight, thanks...
I'll deal with "Godwin's Law" another time. Suffice it for now to say that it smells like an effort among rightists to void the historical record of what indeed does happen when the power of the state marries corporate and religious power, to paraphrase Mussolini. But I suppose he is of no historical significance, either. I could look at my tax bill and see how free I am, I guess. Or you could look at how it's spent. Be thankful (!) that our current government is deferring the cost of its Holy War to your children, and not you. I doubt they could have started it otherwise...