Action: Recording Industry over-reacts, suing 12-year olds and producing CDs that are unplayable on some CD players. While doing so, they also raise the price of the average music CD.
Consequence ===> Users buy less content. RIAA whines that it's those darn pirates to blame, and not that they themselves are acting like spoiled 4-year-olds.
No, what NASA needs is the bureacratic equivalent of an enema: clean out all the "camping" bureaucrats and hangers-on, and put engineers back in charge, with problems to solve and the means to solve them.
In the 1960s, it was a young, brash agency with a mandate. Now it's just another government bureaucracy.
Here's an even BETTER idea. Use federal taxes for only the uses authorized in the Constitution.
Here's a hint: education isn't one of them, it's a local responsibility.
And for that matter, breast cancer research doesn't belong in the Defense Budget either, but it's there. ..
Lastly, get rid of both tenure and teacher's unions: force teachers and schools to PERFORM if they want a higher paycheck and/or more funding. After all, that's the way it works for the rest of us. . .
Re:No one took your time in the first place.
on
Take Back Your Time!
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Actually, starting at the end of the first month, I did the rounds: all the burger flippers, Starbucks, Blockbuster, retail, etc. Zip. It didn't help at the Burger places that I don't speak much Spanish. Mind you, this was Jan 2002, at the worst part of the recession. It still wouldn't have paid the bills of a 40-year-old with a wife, two kids, and a mortgage, but it would have extended me a month or so. I made it through, but it seriously sucked. Which is why I have no sympathy for the single types who just went on world tours while those of us who were a bit more settled took it up the butt. . .
Re:No one took your time in the first place.
on
Take Back Your Time!
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· Score: 1
Zathrus intoned: Rent's due every 30 days. Kids are hungry three times a day. You do the math.
I have. That's why I have money in reserves should both my wife and myself end up unemployed at the same time. If you don't, then you have nobody to blame but yourself for being an indentured servant.
My, my, how charitable we are. I had a 6-month reserve, once upon a time. But then I got married, and two kids later, it was a 3-month reserve. Went dot-com, and pushed it back to 6 months. Dot-com went dot-bomb.
Enter dot-bomb implosion hiatus when couldn't even get an interview for 3 months. Finally got job, at subsistence level for basic family expenses, middle of month 5. Celebrated by taking family to the Golden Arches for first meal out in months. But now have, thanks to tax returns and a re-fi of the mortgage, maybe 2 months' worth back in the bank, and it ain't exactly growing much.
The point of my sob story ? Sometimes you have to USE that 6 month's reserve, and now you have ZERO other choice than jump when Massa, I mean the boss, calls. . .
So, show a little consideration for those of us who weren't quite as lucky as you were. . .
. . . you forgot to point out the linkages between George Lucas and the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy, the Bavarian Illuminati, the Servants of Cthulhlu, the Trilateral Commission, the Rothchilds, the Queen of England, the Black Helicopters, and that creepy kid down the street who spends his life seemingly devoted to his huge collection of Star Wars Action Figures.
Those of us in the know, know that Lucas has but a small part in Immanentzing the Eschaton.
Fnord !
Yeah, they're cheaper than Spamazon, and usually cheaper than buying it at the local Costco Warehouse. But they have stuff nobody ELSE seems to have, and at a fair price. Foreign. Genre. Anime. They have it. My kids just discovered Miyazaki. Got 'em all from there. About the only thing they don't handle is PRON. But there's enough of that, free, on the Net. ..
No, I don't work for them, not even sure where they are in realspace. But I buy 60-80 bucks worth of stuff from them every month, because THEY have it. . .
. ..I used to do politics on the side, and I've noticed a pattern: until the nomination is set, there's always a huge emphasis on grassroots efforts, neighborhood organization, etc.
Until the primary/caucus/nominating convention is over.
Then the "pros" push all the activists aside, and do it their way. I've seen it on both sides of the aisle and ideological spectrum: my expectation is, that should Dean get the nomination, he'll go with the pros as well. . .
Based on the record, raised taxes primarily benefit civil servants and government contractors. And we all know how efficient THEY are. . . (evil grin). And let's not forget the Corporate Masters of some of our fine Public Servants, such as Fritz Hollings, (D-Disney), Orrin Hatch (R-Novell), and of course, Ted "Chappaquiddick" Kennedy (D-Dewar's White Label)
I'll also note that the truly rich have many ways to shelter their income from taxation, whereas those of us who are quite productive, but not exactly "rich" are hitting the top tax brackets without the benefits of the tax shelters used by the likes of The Donald, and good old Arianna "What Party Am I This Month" Huffington, pays virtually zero income tax to Sacramento OR Washington (Sorry about the FreeRepublic link: it's the best one Google found on the topic. ..)
If you feel that the poor require a larger share of your income, might I suggest you increase the efficency of your contributions by giving directly to the charity of your choice.
But your decision about giving to the poor may not match mine: allow me to choose how I spend my money. I prefer to spend it on raising and educating my children, so they do not BECOME poor. . .
That assumes it was rigged last time. The evidence doesn't support that theory, and when was the last time the Republicans successfully concealed a conspiracy. . .
2. Why was it ok for the left to castigate the Right for its' alleged viciousness during the term of the Philanderer in Chief, yet now, calling the President "idiot", "chimp", etc is ok ? You reap so as you sow, the good book says (g)
3. NO candidate (or, in reality, his/her handlers and controllers) wants actual details of issues discussed, it would throw off the finely-tuned media machines that Presidential Campaigns have become. . .
Two: Mob, excuse me, majority rule ? Then why are there still Muslims alive and living quite well after Sept. 11th ? If the Majority opinion on, say, September 20, 2001 was to round 'em all up and shoot 'em, would THAT be right ? From what I saw, that pretty much WAS the majority opinion back then.
Telemarketing is akin to spam: using resources that WE pay for as individuals for others to attempt to use for their own benefit. Without invitation or interest by the victim. The only real difference is that Telemarketing costs quite a bit more per message delivered than spam. . .
And no, DU isn't illegal in the US. But it has been determined by the UN to be an illegal weapon,
No, it has been determined by a UN Agency that it SHOULD be an illegal weapon. There's a difference.
as it violates the Geneva convention. First, they cause undue suffering (Long lasting heavy metal toxicity).
So does lead, which is every bit as toxic as uranium. And the Geneva Convention is referring to armament and ammunition designed specifically to grieviously wound, as opposed to kill: i.e. "dum-dum" bullets, bullets specifically designed to fragment and spread damage after impact in flesh (like the "Black Talon" civilian rounds), etc.
The Geneva Conventions make no reference to Depleted Uranium Armor-piercing ammunition
Second, they continue to affect the area aft
er they are used (Millions of years, in fact) Third, they are toxic agents. Toxic, biological, and chemical weapons are all illegal.
And lead ISN'T Toxic ??? Toxic and Bio/chem weapons are defined as weapons whose primary effect of damage is via a chemical or biological vector, NOT as a possible side effect.
Well, it's obvious YOU are trolling. Try selling a house in an area with the economy bottomed out: you have two choices: either sell for less than you paid. ..or sit on the house, hoping values will go up. Of course, you COULD just walk away.
Likewise, the phone bill. At a certain level of use or less, there's a minimum payment whether you use it or not.
I made it through the dot-com bust, but it sucked. I have friends STILL looking for jobs, a year later, who now work as managers at fast food places, or at Sears, or wherever.
Get a little compassion for your fellow geeks, pal. . .
You miss an important point: E-mail may be free as in speech, but NOT free as in Beer. Spam, and the infrastructure required to carry it, IS a cost to ISPs, and is passed to users in higher access fees. Not to mention admin costs, spam filter costs, abuse desk costs, etc. With postal mail or leafleting, the costs of distribution are paid by the sender. With the cost of sending a individual email being virtually nothing, spam has become our "Tragedy of the Commons", much as commercial and wildly off-topic posts are destroying large parts of USENET as venues for efficient communication.
The REAL problem with spam, is that it is, in effect, theft of service from the ISP that it originated at, and any intervening ISP as well. And we won't even get started on falsified headers, misleading topics, etc. . .
And, if spam WAS such an ethical and wanted product, then WHY do the spammers rely so much on disposable accounts, exploiting open relays, and other disreputable tactics. . .
My point was that prisoner rape was irrelevant to the SENTENCE: the jerk who wrote Blaster-B, while not comitting a crime of VIOLENCE, still committed a highly destructive act. Hence, warranting prison time. . .
Slashdot Mirror
. . .and he didn't even stick his hand in an obvious orifice. . .
(diving for cover)
. . .as anyone who's played "XXXenophile" could tell you. . .
Consequence ===> Users buy less content. RIAA whines that it's those darn pirates to blame, and not that they themselves are acting like spoiled 4-year-olds.
In the 1960s, it was a young, brash agency with a mandate. Now it's just another government bureaucracy.
What, you mean people AREN'T doing this, with a government-mandated and ISSUED Assault-rifle and ammunition in nearly every home???
But that's the point: there's a big difference between an armed CITIZENRY and an armed mob. . .
Here's a hint: education isn't one of them, it's a local responsibility. And for that matter, breast cancer research doesn't belong in the Defense Budget either, but it's there. . .
Lastly, get rid of both tenure and teacher's unions: force teachers and schools to PERFORM if they want a higher paycheck and/or more funding. After all, that's the way it works for the rest of us. . .
Actually, starting at the end of the first month, I did the rounds: all the burger flippers, Starbucks, Blockbuster, retail, etc. Zip. It didn't help at the Burger places that I don't speak much Spanish. Mind you, this was Jan 2002, at the worst part of the recession. It still wouldn't have paid the bills of a 40-year-old with a wife, two kids, and a mortgage, but it would have extended me a month or so. I made it through, but it seriously sucked. Which is why I have no sympathy for the single types who just went on world tours while those of us who were a bit more settled took it up the butt. . .
Rent's due every 30 days. Kids are hungry three times a day. You do the math.
I have. That's why I have money in reserves should both my wife and myself end up unemployed at the same time. If you don't, then you have nobody to blame but yourself for being an indentured servant.
My, my, how charitable we are. I had a 6-month reserve, once upon a time. But then I got married, and two kids later, it was a 3-month reserve. Went dot-com, and pushed it back to 6 months. Dot-com went dot-bomb.
Enter dot-bomb implosion hiatus when couldn't even get an interview for 3 months. Finally got job, at subsistence level for basic family expenses, middle of month 5. Celebrated by taking family to the Golden Arches for first meal out in months. But now have, thanks to tax returns and a re-fi of the mortgage, maybe 2 months' worth back in the bank, and it ain't exactly growing much.
The point of my sob story ? Sometimes you have to USE that 6 month's reserve, and now you have ZERO other choice than jump when Massa, I mean the boss, calls. . .
So, show a little consideration for those of us who weren't quite as lucky as you were. . .
Nuke 'em from orbit. It's the only way to be sure. . . .
But this is a bunch of more fucking useless bullshit--par for the course for this Administration
The Sponsor of the bill is Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY). He's not exactly a part of the Administration. . .
Those of us in the know, know that Lucas has but a small part in Immanentzing the Eschaton. Fnord !
Deep Discount DVD
Yeah, they're cheaper than Spamazon, and usually cheaper than buying it at the local Costco Warehouse. But they have stuff nobody ELSE seems to have, and at a fair price. Foreign. Genre. Anime. They have it. My kids just discovered Miyazaki. Got 'em all from there. About the only thing they don't handle is PRON. But there's enough of that, free, on the Net. . .
No, I don't work for them, not even sure where they are in realspace. But I buy 60-80 bucks worth of stuff from them every month, because THEY have it. . .
Until the primary/caucus/nominating convention is over.
Then the "pros" push all the activists aside, and do it their way. I've seen it on both sides of the aisle and ideological spectrum: my expectation is, that should Dean get the nomination, he'll go with the pros as well. . .
I'll also note that the truly rich have many ways to shelter their income from taxation, whereas those of us who are quite productive, but not exactly "rich" are hitting the top tax brackets without the benefits of the tax shelters used by the likes of The Donald, and good old Arianna "What Party Am I This Month" Huffington, pays virtually zero income tax to Sacramento OR Washington (Sorry about the FreeRepublic link: it's the best one Google found on the topic. . .)
If you feel that the poor require a larger share of your income, might I suggest you increase the efficency of your contributions by giving directly to the charity of your choice.
But your decision about giving to the poor may not match mine: allow me to choose how I spend my money. I prefer to spend it on raising and educating my children, so they do not BECOME poor. . .
That assumes it was rigged last time. The evidence doesn't support that theory, and when was the last time the Republicans successfully concealed a conspiracy. . .
2. Why was it ok for the left to castigate the Right for its' alleged viciousness during the term of the Philanderer in Chief, yet now, calling the President "idiot", "chimp", etc is ok ? You reap so as you sow, the good book says (g)
3. NO candidate (or, in reality, his/her handlers and controllers) wants actual details of issues discussed, it would throw off the finely-tuned media machines that Presidential Campaigns have become. . .
You risk legal harrassment on the highways as well. . . everyone chooses to manage their own risks. . .
Really ? 60+ million Americans are using P2P right now, or so they say. . .
Two: Mob, excuse me, majority rule ? Then why are there still Muslims alive and living quite well after Sept. 11th ? If the Majority opinion on, say, September 20, 2001 was to round 'em all up and shoot 'em, would THAT be right ? From what I saw, that pretty much WAS the majority opinion back then.
Telemarketing is akin to spam: using resources that WE pay for as individuals for others to attempt to use for their own benefit. Without invitation or interest by the victim. The only real difference is that Telemarketing costs quite a bit more per message delivered than spam. . .
No direct link anymore, but found this
No, it has been determined by a UN Agency that it SHOULD be an illegal weapon. There's a difference.
as it violates the Geneva convention. First, they cause undue suffering (Long lasting heavy metal toxicity).
So does lead, which is every bit as toxic as uranium. And the Geneva Convention is referring to armament and ammunition designed specifically to grieviously wound, as opposed to kill: i.e. "dum-dum" bullets, bullets specifically designed to fragment and spread damage after impact in flesh (like the "Black Talon" civilian rounds), etc.
The Geneva Conventions make no reference to Depleted Uranium Armor-piercing ammunition
Second, they continue to affect the area aft er they are used (Millions of years, in fact) Third, they are toxic agents. Toxic, biological, and chemical weapons are all illegal.
And lead ISN'T Toxic ??? Toxic and Bio/chem weapons are defined as weapons whose primary effect of damage is via a chemical or biological vector, NOT as a possible side effect.
Likewise, the phone bill. At a certain level of use or less, there's a minimum payment whether you use it or not.
I made it through the dot-com bust, but it sucked. I have friends STILL looking for jobs, a year later, who now work as managers at fast food places, or at Sears, or wherever.
Get a little compassion for your fellow geeks, pal. . .
But I forget, that was 1776, and they were all Dead White Males, and not relevant to today's world (sarcasm intended)
The REAL problem with spam, is that it is, in effect, theft of service from the ISP that it originated at, and any intervening ISP as well. And we won't even get started on falsified headers, misleading topics, etc. . .
And, if spam WAS such an ethical and wanted product, then WHY do the spammers rely so much on disposable accounts, exploiting open relays, and other disreputable tactics. . .
My point was that prisoner rape was irrelevant to the SENTENCE: the jerk who wrote Blaster-B, while not comitting a crime of VIOLENCE, still committed a highly destructive act. Hence, warranting prison time. . .