American politicians seem more interested in regulating the digital currencies than banning them. Rendering citizen assets worthless is not unheard of, but requires more political courage than current lawmakers exhibit.
Also, the US is hardly the harbinger of world economics it once was. Don't dismiss out of hand the popularity of these coins as alternatives to conventional methods of storing wealth in Asian counties.
Interesting. If it's a security there is already legislation in place to allow the government(s) to regulate it, and as many wise posters have posited, these blockchain coins are presently far too volatile to act as money in day-to-day transactions. Exchanges have historically charged exorbitant fees for buying and selling mined assets in an attempt to combat pricing volatility.
Of course, Bitcoins (and others) have found a niche in the world economy precisely because they are free of government control, banker manipulation, and any regulation. Since there's no shortage of mistrust of governments, everywhere, condemnation by governments could encourage the growth of these digital assets.
Apparently not, given the number of people here who don't believe in gender dysphoria. That would require acknowledging that there are more than the obvious physical differences between men and women.
Ever watch a lot of Football? European or the American variety... it plays the same. I give you, the the makeup call. Sometimes, official calls are muffed due to the inherent imperfections of the human referees. When the call is appreciably unfair, the human refs remember and there's a makeup call a comin'. You'll also see this when one team's player maliciously fouls an opponent and stands over him briefly in impolite, rather demeaning, celebration.
The women, finally, are getting their makeup call. As long as the window of advantage is limited fairly, I'm cool with it. Just remember, like the player who lingers over his vanquished opponent a smidge too long, there is a shelf life before it begins to stink.
There's a difference between having your own opinions and discussing facts about a political issue on a website and outright lying - particularly when the liars are being funded by a foreign government with a particular fondness for vodka.
There is a key difference in what the Russians were able to accomplish in the last American Presidential election and what the US has been able to do meddling in the internal affairs of sovereign nations for generations: the vodka drinkers were not that influential.
Outright lying is troublesome, but not for the morality fail so much as for the number of voters who seem unable to make, or care to make, the distinction... as long as it reinforces their world view.
If we stipulate that (shudder) Youtube, Facebook, and other influential social media outlets are places where political opinion is formed, then they are news sites.
Even if users are unable or unwilling to recognize this fact, folks whose business it is to shape public opinion realize and exploit these forums... including their founders and overseers.
The degree to which your discomfort with this enrages you is in direct proportion to your political bend and who's currently winning hearts and minds.
To channel Piketty, inequality will continue to rise in societies where “c > h.” Here, “c” stands for the degree to which corrupt politicians and public employees, along with their private-sector cronies, break laws for personal gain, and “h” represents the degree to which honest politicians and public employees uphold fair governing practices. Corruption-fueled inequality flourishes in societies where there are no incentives, rules, or institutions to hinder corruption. And having honest people in government is good, but not enough. The practices of pilfering public funds or selling government contracts to the highest bidder must be seen as risky, routinely detected, and systematically punished.
There is a poorly understood symbiotic relationship between humans and the microorganisms that share space within us.
Two people with similar metabolisms and nearly identical diets: One is skinny as a rail, and one spends his life trying to keep the weight off or down, or managed... Fecal transplantation at Johns Hopkins.
solar and wind are going to become cheaper than fossil fuels in the long term anyway...
is an important contention.
In this age of corporations petitioning governments to interfere in markets on their behalf, unless its boosters are more powerful than entrenched energy interests, alternative energy is only likely to flourish if it becomes economically competitive. Or bettter than competitive.
As energy use increases, it become more likely to raise in price; thus there is pressure to use less or improve efficiency. As long as there are no market distortions, like petroleum subsidies or prohibitions on alternative energy generation, tthe market should correct itself.
Why would lab grown meat be inferior? It should be much better. It can be kept sterile so no need to pump it full of antibiotics or wash it in chlorine. It should be possible to tailor it to your tastes, precisely controlling the fat content, the texture, the size and shape...
Getting rid of the antibiotics in meat production should already be a done deal, but I suppose you'll have to figure out a way to disincentivize it for ranchers and feed lots.
Don't get me wrong... I hope you're onto something there. I suspect that even if lab grown meat is the equal of the delicious variety grown in nature, there will still be a Veblen market for the authentic stuff.
Take heart! Several people in my family have been, and are, insulin-dependent diabetics. Dementia is not inextricably linked to the disease, as our family's 80 year old matriarch (20 yrs insulin dependent, 2nd pacemaker) is still as sharp as ever, reads every day, remembers what she had for breakfast last Thursday, and that stupid thing you did 30 years ago.
Aging and physical degradation are as inevitable as death, yet poorly understood. As far as we know, there has never been a time on Earth when so many humans lived so long. With enough data sets, we'll figure out how to make it more bearable.
Chicken meat, per pound, is reportedly about one-tenth the water expenditure of of beef; not a bad outcome but there are production anomalies that seem to account for the eat mor chickn phenomenon.
I heard some planets have this thing called Water Cycle, such that water falling on the ground is no different than water falling into a reservoir and then being pissed onto the ground by animals. who knew?
Are you pissing on my leg and telling me it's raining?
With the resources necessary to raise a pound of beef (1799 gal water) and pork (576 gal water), I suppose the world may indeed hold a future in which only the ultra rich can afford the pleasure of meat on the hoof.
How lucky are we, that we got to live during the time of Peak Meat, and know the savory explosion of juices biting into a medium rare, perfectly prepared, prime ribeye.
It's unfortunate that the victim moved quickly when a testerone fueled SWAT team had their scopes and shaky spotlights trained on him... hell, he probably was sitting in his living room having an adult beverage and thought it was a joke of some sort.
Still. The police involved will not be charged. There is no rioting or civil unrest to sacrifice an officer for.
Additionally, this development offers up more folks to share the blame, shifting the focus in the conversation from flaws in police tactical exploits.
At the very least, forcing its opponents to fight the Net Neutrality battle at the State level multiplies the resources needed and aggravates those who benefit from its repeal.
Thank you for the kind words. Your encouragement has given me the impetus to elaborate.
There is a secondary (and likely a tertiary) effect of the birds behavior, even if we stipulate it is an intentional learned behavior. Unlike human intelligence, it seems unlikely the birds' capacity for learning would ever leap to these longer range consequences.
Of course, even if the birds understand that dropping the 'smoking sticks' does lead to an increased incidence of food for dinner tonight, would the birds understand the consequences of the long range loss of habitat and prey animals caused by a significant wildfire?
One water rescue by autonomous aerial vehicles saves two lives, and there have undoubtedly been more stranded-asshole, mountain-climber/hiker rescues, versus, how many targeted assassinations?
All systems of government protect the interests of the wealthy, just as all government is inherently corrupt. The privilege of a modern western democracy over every other sort of government in all eras is that you really can vote in the change, if you are able to galvanize the masses in great enough numbers. Malaise is your enemy, especially when the citizens enjoy decent, fruitful lives.
The US is a representative republic, and though the popular vote doesn't always reflect the winner in the Presidential election, the electors still pretty much vote in lockstep with their State's respective popular votes.. and they don't have to.
Cities are run by politicians who understand the political coin gained by attracting business and creating jobs for their voting citizens.
Many (most) municipalities I've lived in and around have an economic development fund tied to sales tax receipts and the hotel/motel tax that salts away money to attract/convince business to relocate to their locale.
This is typically in addition to tax breaks and credits that companies shop themselves about for.
The traditional cleaning of the dead was an initial source of disease proliferation, but as efforts to educate the afflicted tribes gained traction, traditional burial rites were altered somewhat successfully.
One of the biggest impediments to stifling the spread of ebola was the native distrust of well-meaning healthcare workers who would appear dressed like spacemen and remove villagers who were often never seen again. This caused a number of the infected to hide their disease and continue its spread.
Slashdot Mirror
American politicians seem more interested in regulating the digital currencies than banning them. Rendering citizen assets worthless is not unheard of, but requires more political courage than current lawmakers exhibit.
Also, the US is hardly the harbinger of world economics it once was. Don't dismiss out of hand the popularity of these coins as alternatives to conventional methods of storing wealth in Asian counties.
Interesting. If it's a security there is already legislation in place to allow the government(s) to regulate it, and as many wise posters have posited, these blockchain coins are presently far too volatile to act as money in day-to-day transactions. Exchanges have historically charged exorbitant fees for buying and selling mined assets in an attempt to combat pricing volatility.
Of course, Bitcoins (and others) have found a niche in the world economy precisely because they are free of government control, banker manipulation, and any regulation. Since there's no shortage of mistrust of governments, everywhere, condemnation by governments could encourage the growth of these digital assets.
Apparently not, given the number of people here who don't believe in gender dysphoria. That would require acknowledging that there are more than the obvious physical differences between men and women.
Ever watch a lot of Football? European or the American variety... it plays the same. I give you, the the makeup call. Sometimes, official calls are muffed due to the inherent imperfections of the human referees. When the call is appreciably unfair, the human refs remember and there's a makeup call a comin'. You'll also see this when one team's player maliciously fouls an opponent and stands over him briefly in impolite, rather demeaning, celebration.
The women, finally, are getting their makeup call. As long as the window of advantage is limited fairly, I'm cool with it. Just remember, like the player who lingers over his vanquished opponent a smidge too long, there is a shelf life before it begins to stink.
There's a difference between having your own opinions and discussing facts about a political issue on a website and outright lying - particularly when the liars are being funded by a foreign government with a particular fondness for vodka.
There is a key difference in what the Russians were able to accomplish in the last American Presidential election and what the US has been able to do meddling in the internal affairs of sovereign nations for generations: the vodka drinkers were not that influential.
Outright lying is troublesome, but not for the morality fail so much as for the number of voters who seem unable to make, or care to make, the distinction... as long as it reinforces their world view.
If we stipulate that (shudder) Youtube, Facebook, and other influential social media outlets are places where political opinion is formed, then they are news sites.
Even if users are unable or unwilling to recognize this fact, folks whose business it is to shape public opinion realize and exploit these forums... including their founders and overseers.
The degree to which your discomfort with this enrages you is in direct proportion to your political bend and who's currently winning hearts and minds.
Yes, as long as you reside in a nation where corruption is nor pervasive.
An interesting take on Piketty's equation:
To channel Piketty, inequality will continue to rise in societies where “c > h.” Here, “c” stands for the degree to which corrupt politicians and public employees, along with their private-sector cronies, break laws for personal gain, and “h” represents the degree to which honest politicians and public employees uphold fair governing practices. Corruption-fueled inequality flourishes in societies where there are no incentives, rules, or institutions to hinder corruption. And having honest people in government is good, but not enough. The practices of pilfering public funds or selling government contracts to the highest bidder must be seen as risky, routinely detected, and systematically punished.
There is a poorly understood symbiotic relationship between humans and the microorganisms that share space within us.
Two people with similar metabolisms and nearly identical diets: One is skinny as a rail, and one spends his life trying to keep the weight off or down, or managed... Fecal transplantation at Johns Hopkins.
10% off? Hahahaha. Apple is one of the best idiot taxes around...
We rightfully make fun of Apple, but they've taken the Veblen good and ran with it like they stole it.
Hear, heaR! (infinitesimal cap lock fail)
Your claim that
solar and wind are going to become cheaper than fossil fuels in the long term anyway...
is an important contention.
In this age of corporations petitioning governments to interfere in markets on their behalf, unless its boosters are more powerful than entrenched energy interests, alternative energy is only likely to flourish if it becomes economically competitive. Or bettter than competitive.
As energy use increases, it become more likely to raise in price; thus there is pressure to use less or improve efficiency. As long as there are no market distortions, like petroleum subsidies or prohibitions on alternative energy generation, tthe market should correct itself.
It didn't say 'inextricably linked,' merely noted a probability.
Post was in the spirit of optimism. Please discontinue reading if it causes vertigo, nausea, or cantankerous behavior.
A single, personal anecdote cannot be used to counter a large, long-term study like this.
Are you sure? Millions of people discount scientific studies every day in favor of thousand year old fables...
Why would lab grown meat be inferior? It should be much better. It can be kept sterile so no need to pump it full of antibiotics or wash it in chlorine. It should be possible to tailor it to your tastes, precisely controlling the fat content, the texture, the size and shape...
Getting rid of the antibiotics in meat production should already be a done deal, but I suppose you'll have to figure out a way to disincentivize it for ranchers and feed lots.
Don't get me wrong... I hope you're onto something there. I suspect that even if lab grown meat is the equal of the delicious variety grown in nature, there will still be a Veblen market for the authentic stuff.
Take heart! Several people in my family have been, and are, insulin-dependent diabetics. Dementia is not inextricably linked to the disease, as our family's 80 year old matriarch (20 yrs insulin dependent, 2nd pacemaker) is still as sharp as ever, reads every day, remembers what she had for breakfast last Thursday, and that stupid thing you did 30 years ago.
Aging and physical degradation are as inevitable as death, yet poorly understood. As far as we know, there has never been a time on Earth when so many humans lived so long. With enough data sets, we'll figure out how to make it more bearable.
Chicken meat, per pound, is reportedly about one-tenth the water expenditure of of beef; not a bad outcome but there are production anomalies that seem to account for the eat mor chickn phenomenon.
I heard some planets have this thing called Water Cycle, such that water falling on the ground is no different than water falling into a reservoir and then being pissed onto the ground by animals. who knew?
Are you pissing on my leg and telling me it's raining?
With the resources necessary to raise a pound of beef (1799 gal water) and pork (576 gal water), I suppose the world may indeed hold a future in which only the ultra rich can afford the pleasure of meat on the hoof.
How lucky are we, that we got to live during the time of Peak Meat, and know the savory explosion of juices biting into a medium rare, perfectly prepared, prime ribeye.
Still. The police involved will not be charged. There is no rioting or civil unrest to sacrifice an officer for.
Additionally, this development offers up more folks to share the blame, shifting the focus in the conversation from flaws in police tactical exploits.
...brought some of the worst kinds of people out of the shadows...
Hmmm... perhaps, and not necessarily, a bad thing.
Maybe it turns out in hindsight the Trump election was a good thing, as it forced America to look at itself in the mirror.
At the very least, forcing its opponents to fight the Net Neutrality battle at the State level multiplies the resources needed and aggravates those who benefit from its repeal.
Thank you for the kind words. Your encouragement has given me the impetus to elaborate.
There is a secondary (and likely a tertiary) effect of the birds behavior, even if we stipulate it is an intentional learned behavior. Unlike human intelligence, it seems unlikely the birds' capacity for learning would ever leap to these longer range consequences.
Of course, even if the birds understand that dropping the 'smoking sticks' does lead to an increased incidence of food for dinner tonight, would the birds understand the consequences of the long range loss of habitat and prey animals caused by a significant wildfire?
One water rescue by autonomous aerial vehicles saves two lives, and there have undoubtedly been more stranded-asshole, mountain-climber/hiker rescues, versus, how many targeted assassinations?
All systems of government protect the interests of the wealthy, just as all government is inherently corrupt. The privilege of a modern western democracy over every other sort of government in all eras is that you really can vote in the change, if you are able to galvanize the masses in great enough numbers. Malaise is your enemy, especially when the citizens enjoy decent, fruitful lives.
The US is a representative republic, and though the popular vote doesn't always reflect the winner in the Presidential election, the electors still pretty much vote in lockstep with their State's respective popular votes.. and they don't have to.
Cities are run by politicians who understand the political coin gained by attracting business and creating jobs for their voting citizens.
Many (most) municipalities I've lived in and around have an economic development fund tied to sales tax receipts and the hotel/motel tax that salts away money to attract/convince business to relocate to their locale.
This is typically in addition to tax breaks and credits that companies shop themselves about for.
Essentially, your home's microwave is a Faraday Cage, thus placing the Echo device inside it should allay all fears.
The traditional cleaning of the dead was an initial source of disease proliferation, but as efforts to educate the afflicted tribes gained traction, traditional burial rites were altered somewhat successfully.
One of the biggest impediments to stifling the spread of ebola was the native distrust of well-meaning healthcare workers who would appear dressed like spacemen and remove villagers who were often never seen again. This caused a number of the infected to hide their disease and continue its spread.