Plus, we haven't dug down deep enough to find Site 3, the Soul Cube, and the Portal to Hell. . .
. . . besides, we already have that portal: we call it "the Beltway". . .
Then the US Government should look for TERRORISTS, not WEAPONS. But, alas, doing so would require likely profiles of terrorists, and GOD FORBID we look closer at people whose background makes it more likely they are terrorists. . . .
On the OTHER hand, it is ALSO **political** speech, which gets the highest protection by the courts. Hopefully, that will mean something as well. . . .
Ahem. The South was run by the Democrats. It wasn't until the Dems took up the issue of Civil Rights in the 1960s that the South started to go Republican.
It was Democrats who pushed Jim Crow and such. I'll also note that it was the Republicans that introduced and passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. ..
. ..because our "Zero-risk" society, and the Safety/Environmental "Nazi"s will go absolutely ape over the idea . . . add to that the general scientific illteracy of the general public and. . . .
"Death beams from space, that can microwave a city if terrorists got control of it". ..
Former EW here. And of course, some of the insane ways they have to land it. I was pulling "foxtrot" duty one day (Supervisor of Flying: effectively, you OWN the airfield) with some heavy crosswinds, 45 knots or so. . . We had a plane come in about 100 YARDS to the one side of the runway when it broke the cloud deck, about 400 feet off the ground. Needless to say, I called the abort, and had him go around for another landing. . . .
Incidentally, looking at the tail number of the B-52 model. . . I realise that I've had 100+ hours in the bird that Wren build a model of. . .
You need to cut back on the caffiene, but you DO raise some valid points. On the other hand, you also blow a lot of points.
On the other hand, most of the problems you note can be fixed by the Shakespeare Solution: Kill ***ALL*** the lawyers. . . .
Add to that, the hoops you have to jump through to BECOME a teacher in the first place.
I graduated from college with a Bachelor's in Geology and Geophysics. I then went into the USAF and flight school, and eventually became an instructor, teaching people on the ground, in the simulator, and in the air.
After I left the USAF, my old high school contacted me about possibly coming back to teach. And I was interested.
But the hoops I would have had to jump through, going back to college for 2 years to get "certified", when I already had been certified to teach people to deal with life-and-death-level situations, but it wasn't sufficient credentials to teach in a public school.
It's a pity. The old Earth Science teacher was about to retire, and they had the chance to get a bona-fide geologist into the job. . . but bureau-crap kept it from happening.
And THAT was 15 + years ago. . . it's gotten worse, as I see what the schools have become, from seeing my children in them.
Which is why my wife and I now homeschool: the oldest is coding Python and starting Java to prep her for coding in C, and the youngest taught **HERSELF** HTML, Photoshop, and a bunch of other graphics applications. . . they may lack "socialization" skills, but they code better than I do. . . (ok, I'm a security geek nowadays...)
I'm talking TRAINING and PROCESSING facilities. Yeah, the selective service is there. But a pipeline has TWO ends. You need not just physical facilities to house and train draftees, but you need instructors, drill sergeants, etc.
None of which can be done instantly, it's a 1-2 year ramp-up to bring it all online. ..
As an ex-USAF aircrew (B-52 Electronic Warfare Officer), I can tell you you get paid EXTRA if on flight status. Likewise, airborne troops get extra pay for Jump status, etc.
When I was a Second Lieutenant, I lived on base in 1-BR BOQ (Bachelor Officer's Quarters). 1 Room, shared kitchen with guy next door, and a bathroom. A step up from a College dorm, but not quite an apartment.
I had to pay a monthly maid fee, and buy all of my own food. Also, officers have to buy all their own uniforms, if it's not specialty gear (like flightsuits, etc). You get access to the BX and Commissary, so your purchases on-base are tax free. And in most states, unless you're stationed in the state you're registered to vote in, you don't pay state taxes, so it's just Federal, Social inSecurity, and Medicare. ..
And there are generally programs to get young officers cars at Fleet prices, especially for the Academy grads. Insurance is cheaper for officers as well, we just tend to be a lower-risk group overall. ..
. ..and when **I** went in (1984), base pay for an O-1 was $13K and change. ..the extra $125 a month for Flight Pay was noticable, and after 8 years on flight orders, jumped to 4-500 bucks additional a month. . .
Except now, National Guard just means you get to go in the "never-know-where-or-when-the-guerillas-are-gonna- hit" stage of the war, as opposed to regular's who have the enemy regulars fleeing before them. . .
You'd think, if it was a genuine secret conspiracy, that PEOPLE WOULDN'T KNOW ABOUT IT.
Methinks you may well have been drafted into the tinfoil hat brigade. A General Draft would require YEARS worth of infrastructure to be built: we don't HAVE the facilities to house or train that many new recruits/draftees/etc.
Remember, armchair generals study strategy and tactics. REAL Generals study logistics, and the logistics for a massive draft just aren't there. . .
(1) A Huge amount of noise and rumbling. ..
and. ..
(2) An eventual, almost silent and un-noticeable implosion. . . .
However, your rights end. . .
on
Cell-Phone Wars
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
. ..when they interfere with the rights of others. Private property owners are well within their rights, especially in restaurants and theaters, to install dampening material and/or jammers, so that their remainder of their customers can enjoy their experience in peace.
Incidentally, just went to the movies yesterday, saw an amusing ad, promising cell-phone-user ejection seats in the theater soon. . .
. . . I have been known, from time to time, to write songs. And also the odd piece of fiction.
And have been faced with one of these uber NDA's-we-own-all-the-output-of-your-mind contracts.
When I mentioned that I did songwriting and fiction, and could they specifically exempt them from the Employment Agreement, HR generally calls Counsel, and in a day or two, a slightly modified Employment Agreement is ready.
Often, the gentle approach works. . .
Where is Randy the Wonder Lizard when you need him
on
Paranoia
·
· Score: 1
. ..now THAT was a module. D&D meets PARANOIA!, and three wizards who look suspiciously like ZZ Top in wizard outfits. . . .
What we DON'T know about other life existing. . .
on
Lonely Planets
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
Chess the Cat writes:
Life may be common throughout the universe. But I highly doubt there is another intelligent lifeform out there. And since the burden of proof lies with you let's see what you got.
Either intelligent life is so rare to be nearly impossible, or it's common seem to be the two default positions. Allow me to suggest a third:
We have no idea how common intelligent life is Out There, as we lack ANY data whatsoever. So likelyhood is SHEER SPECULATION at this point. And getting the information to make a well-founded projection will require some significant interstellar capability on our part. . ..
Even the statement that LIFE is common has yet to be proven. . .
. ..but only if you keep your knives in a government-approved Knife Safe, otherwise you were "negligent". Even the butter knives.
It's a good thing we don't get ALL the Government we pay for: can you imagine policies like this with COMPETENT Government employees and enforcement ????
Actually, the Arabs only POPULARIZED the "Arabic" number system: it came from India, originally, and was adopted by Arab traders, who saw its' ease of use as a clear reason to move to the "Arabic" numbering system.
That said, perhaps we should make a geek ISP that fixes these problems, perhaps by charging more and then letting people do what they actually want to do with the access.
He keeps on writing novels though his life is through
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Some folks say it shows what Dianetics do
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Yeah, his life is through
Yeah, what Dianetics do
Yeah, when I saw the name
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
He wrote before he founded Scientology
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
But soon he found religion makes bucks easily
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Scientology
Makes bucks easily
Yeah, Dianetics pays
For L. Ron, Ron, Ron; for L. Ron, Ron!
Oooo... Oooo...
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Oooo... Oooo...
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Twenty-two best sellers and there's more to come
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Heaven only knows where they're a-comin' from
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Yeah, more books to come
Yeah, who knows where from
Yeah, this I've gotta see
From L. Ron, Ron, Ron; from L. Ron, Ron!
Slashdot Mirror
And then there was Voyager 6, which we know will still be at least partly functional well into the 23rd Century. . . .
Plus, we haven't dug down deep enough to find Site 3, the Soul Cube, and the Portal to Hell. . . . . . besides, we already have that portal: we call it "the Beltway". . .
Kennedy 2008 ?? A Blonde in Every Pond ?? (diving for cover)
Then the US Government should look for TERRORISTS, not WEAPONS. But, alas, doing so would require likely profiles of terrorists, and GOD FORBID we look closer at people whose background makes it more likely they are terrorists. . . .
On the OTHER hand, it is ALSO **political** speech, which gets the highest protection by the courts. Hopefully, that will mean something as well. . . .
It was Democrats who pushed Jim Crow and such. I'll also note that it was the Republicans that introduced and passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. . .
YOU need to study political history. . .
I guess the Vision for Space Exploration doesn't count as Bush Administration interest in Space. . .
"Death beams from space, that can microwave a city if terrorists got control of it". . .
Former EW here. And of course, some of the insane ways they have to land it. I was pulling "foxtrot" duty one day (Supervisor of Flying: effectively, you OWN the airfield) with some heavy crosswinds, 45 knots or so. . . We had a plane come in about 100 YARDS to the one side of the runway when it broke the cloud deck, about 400 feet off the ground. Needless to say, I called the abort, and had him go around for another landing. . . . Incidentally, looking at the tail number of the B-52 model. . . I realise that I've had 100+ hours in the bird that Wren build a model of. . .
You need to cut back on the caffiene, but you DO raise some valid points. On the other hand, you also blow a lot of points. On the other hand, most of the problems you note can be fixed by the Shakespeare Solution: Kill ***ALL*** the lawyers. . . .
Add to that, the hoops you have to jump through to BECOME a teacher in the first place.
I graduated from college with a Bachelor's in Geology and Geophysics. I then went into the USAF and flight school, and eventually became an instructor, teaching people on the ground, in the simulator, and in the air.
After I left the USAF, my old high school contacted me about possibly coming back to teach.
And I was interested.
But the hoops I would have had to jump through, going back to college for 2 years to get "certified", when I already had been certified to teach people to deal with life-and-death-level situations, but it wasn't sufficient credentials to teach in a public school.
It's a pity. The old Earth Science teacher was about to retire, and they had the chance to get a bona-fide geologist into the job. . . but bureau-crap kept it from happening.
And THAT was 15 + years ago. . . it's gotten worse, as I see what the schools have become, from seeing my children in them.
Which is why my wife and I now homeschool: the oldest is coding Python and starting Java to prep her for coding in C, and the youngest taught **HERSELF** HTML, Photoshop, and a bunch of other graphics applications. . . they may lack "socialization" skills, but they code better than I do. . . (ok, I'm a security geek nowadays...)
None of which can be done instantly, it's a 1-2 year ramp-up to bring it all online. . .
Like I said, the logistics just ain't there
I had to pay a monthly maid fee, and buy all of my own food. Also, officers have to buy all their own uniforms, if it's not specialty gear (like flightsuits, etc). You get access to the BX and Commissary, so your purchases on-base are tax free. And in most states, unless you're stationed in the state you're registered to vote in, you don't pay state taxes, so it's just Federal, Social inSecurity, and Medicare. . .
And there are generally programs to get young officers cars at Fleet prices, especially for the Academy grads. Insurance is cheaper for officers as well, we just tend to be a lower-risk group overall. . .
. . .and when **I** went in (1984), base pay for an O-1 was $13K and change. . .the extra $125 a month for Flight Pay was noticable, and after 8 years on flight orders, jumped to 4-500 bucks additional a month. . .
Except now, National Guard just means you get to go in the "never-know-where-or-when-the-guerillas-are-gonna- hit" stage of the war, as opposed to regular's who have the enemy regulars fleeing before them. . .
Methinks you may well have been drafted into the tinfoil hat brigade. A General Draft would require YEARS worth of infrastructure to be built: we don't HAVE the facilities to house or train that many new recruits/draftees/etc.
Remember, armchair generals study strategy and tactics. REAL Generals study logistics, and the logistics for a massive draft just aren't there. . .
(1) A Huge amount of noise and rumbling. . . .
and. .
(2) An eventual, almost silent and un-noticeable implosion. . . .
Incidentally, just went to the movies yesterday, saw an amusing ad, promising cell-phone-user ejection seats in the theater soon. . .
. . . I have been known, from time to time, to write songs. And also the odd piece of fiction. And have been faced with one of these uber NDA's-we-own-all-the-output-of-your-mind contracts. When I mentioned that I did songwriting and fiction, and could they specifically exempt them from the Employment Agreement, HR generally calls Counsel, and in a day or two, a slightly modified Employment Agreement is ready. Often, the gentle approach works. . .
. . .now THAT was a module. D&D meets PARANOIA!, and three wizards who look suspiciously like ZZ Top in wizard outfits. . . .
Life may be common throughout the universe. But I highly doubt there is another intelligent lifeform out there. And since the burden of proof lies with you let's see what you got.
Either intelligent life is so rare to be nearly impossible, or it's common seem to be the two default positions. Allow me to suggest a third: We have no idea how common intelligent life is Out There, as we lack ANY data whatsoever. So likelyhood is SHEER SPECULATION at this point. And getting the information to make a well-founded projection will require some significant interstellar capability on our part. . . .
Even the statement that LIFE is common has yet to be proven. . .
It's a good thing we don't get ALL the Government we pay for: can you imagine policies like this with COMPETENT Government employees and enforcement ????
Even the Muslims say so. . .
That said, perhaps we should make a geek ISP that fixes these problems, perhaps by charging more and then letting people do what they actually want to do with the access.
It's called SPEAKEASY.NET. Be there, aloha. . .
. . . when she starts spawning child processes.
"L. Ron Ron"
Copyright 1990
Lynn Gold
He keeps on writing novels though his life is through
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Some folks say it shows what Dianetics do
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Yeah, his life is through
Yeah, what Dianetics do
Yeah, when I saw the name
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
He wrote before he founded Scientology
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
But soon he found religion makes bucks easily
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Scientology
Makes bucks easily
Yeah, Dianetics pays
For L. Ron, Ron, Ron; for L. Ron, Ron!
Oooo... Oooo...
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Oooo... Oooo...
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Twenty-two best sellers and there's more to come
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Heaven only knows where they're a-comin' from
It's L. Ron, Ron, Ron; it's L. Ron, Ron!
Yeah, more books to come
Yeah, who knows where from
Yeah, this I've gotta see
From L. Ron, Ron, Ron; from L. Ron, Ron!