I had a friend who was in a tank in Iraq. This wouldn't really matter much against RPG's. They would routinely come back from combat and find black marks on their tank where RPG's had hit, and they hadn't even noticed.
It's a freaking TANK. It's got armor that's FEET thick. A rocket propelled GRENADE isn't going to hurt a tank. You might as well be tossing cherry bombs at it.
It's the humvees, helicopters, and other troop transports that are vulnerable to RPG's.
Many religious people DO wish to impose their moral law on the entire society, however, not all do. It's important that you realize that "religious" people aren't just cookie cutters of everyone else--there are different "religious people".
As a dedicated Christian (and a Libertarian), I believe everyone has free will to do as they choose. If you choose to do something which I personally don't believe in--that's your choice. For me to tell you that you cannot do something "sinful" is to impose on your personal freedom. Nor is it really helpful--I don't help you know God any better by making you follow my rules. Christianity isn't about making people not "sin", it's about knowing God.
It is expected in our culture that children are not yet adults. They are limited in both the actions that they can choose (and the consequences--being tried as a juvenile is less severe than being tried as an adult). Most people would not support a mandatory bike (not motorcycle) helmet law for everyone, but most would support a mandatory child bike helmet law. As a culture, it is generally understood that children do not have all of the freedoms that we enjoy as adults.
For that reason, there is a group of people which believes that it's societies' obligation to "protect" children from Pornography, which they consider harmful. Although I realize that you most likely do not view pornography as harmful, those that do wish to protect children in the same way as those who wish to pass mandatory child helmet laws. From their point of view, their beliefs are consistent.
The way that the Government is going about subpoenaing for information is wrong. There are a number of ways to collect such information without infringing on the privacy of its citizens. However, it's much more convienant to infringe on our rights (and our Government certainly doesn't care about rights), rather than collect information in a non-invasive way, so they've chosen to invade our privacy.
Please realize that not all "religious" people have a similar viewpoint as those who generally disregard our rights. I too believe that God instructs me personally. I am not a puppet, but I do choose to live my life following the plan he has laid out for me. And by no means do I agree with many of the things that our Government is doing, as I feel that many of them are infringing on our personal freedoms. Realize that religion is often used as a tool to achieve personal goals, rather than knowing God. Don't blame God for the choices that people make when they USE God to support their Goal. That would be like me blaming you for the war in Iraq, even if you had opposed it from the onset.
I'm truly sorry that you have had so many negative experiences with people who profess to know God in your life. It's a shame, and it's a disservice to him.
Yeah, I totally agree. ADHD is completely misdiagnosed.
As a kid, I was struggling with sitting still, concentration and getting my homework done. After thorough psychological examination, I was diagnosed with ADHD. I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
Then I began ritalin. On a proper dosage, many of my previous behaviors and inabilities started to fade. I became more calm, and I was able to focus and get my homework done. I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
The excessive amounts of sugar in my diet probably had a huge contribution too. I didn't have any refined sugar before the age of two, and my parents watched me like a hawk because they're health nuts. I ate whole grain foods, vegetables, and very little sugar. I'm sure it was the sugar.
I went to a private elementary school at the time where everyone in the class of 18 scored a 95th percentile or above on the standardized tests. The students continually exceeded the expectations of all standardized tests that were given. But... I agree, it probably was a case of a really stupid teacher who couldn't teach us kids. After all, my teacher DID recommend my parents that I be investigated for ADHD. I'm sure her ability was subpar and she was just trying to cover it up. I'm sure it was the teacher.
I also agree that if someone is able to concentrate for 30 minutes straight in one particular situation, they should be able to concentrate the same in any situation. For instance, factors such as interest in the activity are completely unimportant. People to this day testify that "hyperfocusing" is exactly the way I focus in life--If I'm interested in the activity it's nearly impossible to get my attention, but if I'm not interested, I seem constantly distracted. But I'm sure all of my friends are wrong. They probably don't know me too well. I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
Finally, how dare we give our kids drugs. Giving drugs to kids is inherently evil--everyone knows that drugged kids just sounds bad. Regardless of what it treats, be it severe depression (for suicidal children), autism, or for heart conditions, I think we should put a blanket ban on drug use in Children. That'll teach our children about being careful around drugs. Sure, a few may die from heart attacks, or commit suicide, but at least they won't be doing illegal drug use later in life. I'm sure it's a misdiagnosis.
Finally, all people who use ritalin are highly prone to illegal drug and substance use later in life. Teaching children that they can take a pill for their problems obviously reinforces this behavior, and is solely to blame for drug use later in life. Okay, so I'm not a substance abuser, even though I've taken ritalin, but I'm sure I'm an extremely rare case. I must have been very lucky because I took Ritalin for many years. Obviously all substance abuse cases aren't the responsibility of the abuser, but the fault of the drug Ritalin that they were FORCED to take earlier in life. I'm sure it's a misdiagnosis.
I'm not saying ADHD is overprescribed or incorrectly identified. I'm sure some doctors and teachers DO use it as a copout; however, saying that there is no such thing as ADHD is extremely shortsighted. If you've ever met truly ADHD people, there would be no doubt in your mind that the disorder actually exists. I know because I am one. I struggle with it every day--I attempt to act as normal as possible--and most of the time people can't even tell. But being able to do that has taken years of self-training as well as years of Ritalin use for me to tell what "normal" is. I no longer take Ritalin now, but had I never taken it, I would be struggling in life much more than I do today.
I do agree with you on stem cells--while I oppose killing a human life for stem cells, we have plenty of existing cells to go around, and there's nothing wrong with using those.
I also see your point (although I don't know of any evidence of anti-pornography legislation, offhand--it definately could exist), but I really DO think that schools NEED to start looking at possible alternatives to evolution. I'm not anti-evolution, but we as a society have begun to treat it as a religion.
I've done a fair amount of research on evolution, and there are a number of problems with the current model. When I even MENTION these flaws, I get immediately shot down as a "fanatic". I'm an intellectual, (as you are, most likely), and the idea of discussing the possibility that a THEORY might be wrong being akin to heresy really does bug me.
Contrast this with the theory of dark matter-- We don't know that it exists for sure, but it's currently the best working scientific model we have. However, when people discuss alternatives to dark matter theories, they are at least examined for their merit. Evolution is so politically charged that it's disputed based on the content of people's emotions, not intellect.
Personally, I don't know if we evolved or not. It's a theory, and it's currently the best scientific theory we have about our origin. I'd rather try to find the truth, then fanatically defend one side or the other... and I'm a dedicated Christian.
Also, as someone who actively worked in inner-city religious charities, funding is drastically needed. If you're going to have social welfare programs (which we are--and as a moderate Libertarian I have some problems with a lot of them), I really don't see a problem with giving federal money for charitable organizations regardless of their religious background. That money shouldn't (and isn't, at least legally) be going to promoting that religion, but going to helping those in need... and if those in need are being helped, then I really don't see a problem.
Anyway, thanks for a thought-out answer to my question.
Pla: I hear so many people on slashdot complain about the "religious agenda" of the current right-wing leaders of the United States.
Except for possibly the issue of Abortion/Stem cells, what political decisions are religiously motivated?
I'm sure there's some kickbacks from the politicians to individual religious organizations (bad--both parties fund their special interest groups--face it, they're corrupt), but I'm not aware of any policy or legislation that is specifically a "Religious Agenda"
They're going to claim their loss of privacy, a right supposedly ensured by the fourth amendment and reinforced by other clauses in the Constitution.
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Not quite. A massive phone in or write-in campaign to express your opinions is protected under free speech. It's the act of expressing your opinion on a specific issue, and that is protected.
Hammering a server for fun and games is NOT free speech. He is not attempting to discuss a political or social issue; it is simply a DDOS, even if it is a very simple one.
The issue isn't that he did something wrong. He did. The issue is the COMPLETE overreaction of the school officials.
He's a KID (not an asshole, an 18 year old KID), for gosh sakes, and he's just having fun. Since when was fun so wrong in our society?
Let's compare: 1) Fifty years ago, when a kid made a minor offense such as: a) scratching some graffiti on a barn b) scaring a farmer's animals to create havoc
He/she was forced to help the farmer for a few hours, or clean up their graffiti (community service). Now we throw them in JAIL and give them a FELONY charge which will follow them for the REST OF THEIR LIVES.
It's not like he hacked the computer or tried to change his grades. He's probably a smart kid wondering if it's possible to overload a server simply refreshing a page. Let him learn, both about computers and the (reasonable) consequences of his actions. Wanna teach "computer ethics" in school? This is how. Make him clean the school or suspend him for a day or something.
I sympathize. The government often screws people, and the armed forces screw the soldiers in a lot of ways. It's really sad. My friend is a marine and a lot of people try to screw them over.
On the other hand, I'm not sure that minimum separation laws are necessairly a bad thing. Too many people take marriage far too lightly in this society.
People don't know what DRM is, but they DO know what a virus is.
This isn't EXACTLY a virus, but it's VERY close, so call it that.
You're not enough of a salesperson. You're trying to be exact and precise about what you say--instead, give them a term they understand that is close to reality.
"Sony distributed a virus on their CD's in an attempt to break your CD drive so that it cannot copy their CD's. In addition, it opens your computer up so that it can get many other viruses, and it has the ability to report your usage back to Sony at any time."
Actually, the usual problem I've had with AMD chips are not the cpus, but the Via chipsets. K6's did have some problems, but Athlons have no stability issues that I know of. The K6's on Via chipsets had SERIOUS problems.
I've used 2 durons, 4 athlons, and I'm running an X2 at work now. They all run on Nvidia chipsets, and I have had ZERO problems (excluding defective hardware). My K6's on via chipsets use to give me headaches all the time... and I've had friends who run Athlons on Via's and they have problems too.
Just get a Nforce2 or Nforce4 chipset if you want to use AMD, or you'll hate them.
Grandparent, is your new AMD chipset a Nforce? That might be why you've had no stability problems with this one.
I think what the grandparent is saying is that instead of complaining that you don't feel you're getting paid enough, you probably should go out and start a company/find a new job. If enough people are getting screwed over by their employers (in the way you say they are), then you should have no problem assembling a good workforce and making a decent profit, both for yourself and for your workforce.
If you do that, you'll not only better yourself, but the world as well.
Of course, 90%+ of people don't do that--they don't have the initiative/motivation/desire to start a company and work/risk that, so instead they get employed. And if you're an employee, you are a commodity on the free market, just like any other--so don't complain when you think you're not valued by the market as you should be. You're not living in a third world country--you're living in a country with options. Go get another job at another company, or start your own. If there are no other jobs which pay what you want at other companies--then perhaps you're not as valuable as you think you are.
I'm not implying that you're lazy or out for entitlements. I'm just stating the facts about how a free market works. You could be a very dedicated, hardworking person, and I am in no way attacking you. If you have the skills, intelligence and dedication to start a company, the world could use a few more ethical ones.
Slashdot Mirror
I often wondered about how they broke into debian.org. Do you have a link which explains which exploit was used?
I'd rather take the "Appl" from Apple and the "e" from Adobe...
This is the one that I was looking for (Yahoo! Mail Beta randomly crashes, causing the loss of whatever email is being written)
8 3
https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=3226
I had a friend who was in a tank in Iraq. This wouldn't really matter much against RPG's. They would routinely come back from combat and find black marks on their tank where RPG's had hit, and they hadn't even noticed.
It's a freaking TANK. It's got armor that's FEET thick. A rocket propelled GRENADE isn't going to hurt a tank. You might as well be tossing cherry bombs at it.
It's the humvees, helicopters, and other troop transports that are vulnerable to RPG's.
Many religious people DO wish to impose their moral law on the entire society, however, not all do. It's important that you realize that "religious" people aren't just cookie cutters of everyone else--there are different "religious people".
As a dedicated Christian (and a Libertarian), I believe everyone has free will to do as they choose. If you choose to do something which I personally don't believe in--that's your choice. For me to tell you that you cannot do something "sinful" is to impose on your personal freedom. Nor is it really helpful--I don't help you know God any better by making you follow my rules. Christianity isn't about making people not "sin", it's about knowing God.
It is expected in our culture that children are not yet adults. They are limited in both the actions that they can choose (and the consequences--being tried as a juvenile is less severe than being tried as an adult). Most people would not support a mandatory bike (not motorcycle) helmet law for everyone, but most would support a mandatory child bike helmet law. As a culture, it is generally understood that children do not have all of the freedoms that we enjoy as adults.
For that reason, there is a group of people which believes that it's societies' obligation to "protect" children from Pornography, which they consider harmful. Although I realize that you most likely do not view pornography as harmful, those that do wish to protect children in the same way as those who wish to pass mandatory child helmet laws. From their point of view, their beliefs are consistent.
The way that the Government is going about subpoenaing for information is wrong. There are a number of ways to collect such information without infringing on the privacy of its citizens. However, it's much more convienant to infringe on our rights (and our Government certainly doesn't care about rights), rather than collect information in a non-invasive way, so they've chosen to invade our privacy.
Please realize that not all "religious" people have a similar viewpoint as those who generally disregard our rights. I too believe that God instructs me personally. I am not a puppet, but I do choose to live my life following the plan he has laid out for me. And by no means do I agree with many of the things that our Government is doing, as I feel that many of them are infringing on our personal freedoms. Realize that religion is often used as a tool to achieve personal goals, rather than knowing God. Don't blame God for the choices that people make when they USE God to support their Goal. That would be like me blaming you for the war in Iraq, even if you had opposed it from the onset.
I'm truly sorry that you have had so many negative experiences with people who profess to know God in your life. It's a shame, and it's a disservice to him.
Yeah, I totally agree. ADHD is completely misdiagnosed.
As a kid, I was struggling with sitting still, concentration and getting my homework done. After thorough psychological examination, I was diagnosed with ADHD.
I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
Then I began ritalin. On a proper dosage, many of my previous behaviors and inabilities started to fade. I became more calm, and I was able to focus and get my homework done.
I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
The excessive amounts of sugar in my diet probably had a huge contribution too. I didn't have any refined sugar before the age of two, and my parents watched me like a hawk because they're health nuts. I ate whole grain foods, vegetables, and very little sugar.
I'm sure it was the sugar.
I went to a private elementary school at the time where everyone in the class of 18 scored a 95th percentile or above on the standardized tests. The students continually exceeded the expectations of all standardized tests that were given. But... I agree, it probably was a case of a really stupid teacher who couldn't teach us kids. After all, my teacher DID recommend my parents that I be investigated for ADHD. I'm sure her ability was subpar and she was just trying to cover it up.
I'm sure it was the teacher.
I also agree that if someone is able to concentrate for 30 minutes straight in one particular situation, they should be able to concentrate the same in any situation. For instance, factors such as interest in the activity are completely unimportant. People to this day testify that "hyperfocusing" is exactly the way I focus in life--If I'm interested in the activity it's nearly impossible to get my attention, but if I'm not interested, I seem constantly distracted. But I'm sure all of my friends are wrong. They probably don't know me too well.
I'm sure it was a misdiagnosis.
Finally, how dare we give our kids drugs. Giving drugs to kids is inherently evil--everyone knows that drugged kids just sounds bad. Regardless of what it treats, be it severe depression (for suicidal children), autism, or for heart conditions, I think we should put a blanket ban on drug use in Children. That'll teach our children about being careful around drugs. Sure, a few may die from heart attacks, or commit suicide, but at least they won't be doing illegal drug use later in life.
I'm sure it's a misdiagnosis.
Finally, all people who use ritalin are highly prone to illegal drug and substance use later in life. Teaching children that they can take a pill for their problems obviously reinforces this behavior, and is solely to blame for drug use later in life. Okay, so I'm not a substance abuser, even though I've taken ritalin, but I'm sure I'm an extremely rare case. I must have been very lucky because I took Ritalin for many years. Obviously all substance abuse cases aren't the responsibility of the abuser, but the fault of the drug Ritalin that they were FORCED to take earlier in life.
I'm sure it's a misdiagnosis.
I'm not saying ADHD is overprescribed or incorrectly identified. I'm sure some doctors and teachers DO use it as a copout; however, saying that there is no such thing as ADHD is extremely shortsighted. If you've ever met truly ADHD people, there would be no doubt in your mind that the disorder actually exists. I know because I am one. I struggle with it every day--I attempt to act as normal as possible--and most of the time people can't even tell. But being able to do that has taken years of self-training as well as years of Ritalin use for me to tell what "normal" is. I no longer take Ritalin now, but had I never taken it, I would be struggling in life much more than I do today.
It already exists:
/
http://www.atomiccog.com/products/toccer-for-treo
My apologies to Tienshiao if I just slashdotted his server.
(AIM client for the Treo 600/650 which uses a direct TOC connection... no sms needed)
Pla: Thanks.
I do agree with you on stem cells--while I oppose killing a human life for stem cells, we have plenty of existing cells to go around, and there's nothing wrong with using those.
I also see your point (although I don't know of any evidence of anti-pornography legislation, offhand--it definately could exist), but I really DO think that schools NEED to start looking at possible alternatives to evolution. I'm not anti-evolution, but we as a society have begun to treat it as a religion.
I've done a fair amount of research on evolution, and there are a number of problems with the current model. When I even MENTION these flaws, I get immediately shot down as a "fanatic". I'm an intellectual, (as you are, most likely), and the idea of discussing the possibility that a THEORY might be wrong being akin to heresy really does bug me.
Contrast this with the theory of dark matter-- We don't know that it exists for sure, but it's currently the best working scientific model we have. However, when people discuss alternatives to dark matter theories, they are at least examined for their merit. Evolution is so politically charged that it's disputed based on the content of people's emotions, not intellect.
Personally, I don't know if we evolved or not. It's a theory, and it's currently the best scientific theory we have about our origin. I'd rather try to find the truth, then fanatically defend one side or the other... and I'm a dedicated Christian.
Also, as someone who actively worked in inner-city religious charities, funding is drastically needed. If you're going to have social welfare programs (which we are--and as a moderate Libertarian I have some problems with a lot of them), I really don't see a problem with giving federal money for charitable organizations regardless of their religious background. That money shouldn't (and isn't, at least legally) be going to promoting that religion, but going to helping those in need... and if those in need are being helped, then I really don't see a problem.
Anyway, thanks for a thought-out answer to my question.
Yeah, I was clearly wrong.
Pla: I hear so many people on slashdot complain about the "religious agenda" of the current right-wing leaders of the United States.
Except for possibly the issue of Abortion/Stem cells, what political decisions are religiously motivated?
I'm sure there's some kickbacks from the politicians to individual religious organizations (bad--both parties fund their special interest groups--face it, they're corrupt), but I'm not aware of any policy or legislation that is specifically a "Religious Agenda"
Awesome troll :)
Now watch it get rated +5 interesting, and this get rated -1 offtopic...
With my little i?
They're going to claim their loss of privacy, a right supposedly ensured by the fourth amendment and reinforced by other clauses in the Constitution.
Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
And then it was like... beepbeepbeepbeep, and then, like, half my accounts were gone. And I was like, huh?
They were really good accounts too. And then I had to recreate them and I had to do it fast, and they weren't as good...
Interesting invasion of privacy. Do you have a link or any proof that the Government requested this information?
How does that link do the redirect? I know it took me to pricegrabber, but I would like to be aware for phishing schemes.
Not quite. A massive phone in or write-in campaign to express your opinions is protected under free speech. It's the act of expressing your opinion on a specific issue, and that is protected.
Hammering a server for fun and games is NOT free speech. He is not attempting to discuss a political or social issue; it is simply a DDOS, even if it is a very simple one.
The issue isn't that he did something wrong. He did. The issue is the COMPLETE overreaction of the school officials.
He's a KID (not an asshole, an 18 year old KID), for gosh sakes, and he's just having fun. Since when was fun so wrong in our society?
Let's compare:
1) Fifty years ago, when a kid made a minor offense such as:
a) scratching some graffiti on a barn
b) scaring a farmer's animals to create havoc
He/she was forced to help the farmer for a few hours, or clean up their graffiti (community service). Now we throw them in JAIL and give them a FELONY charge which will follow them for the REST OF THEIR LIVES.
It's not like he hacked the computer or tried to change his grades. He's probably a smart kid wondering if it's possible to overload a server simply refreshing a page. Let him learn, both about computers and the (reasonable) consequences of his actions. Wanna teach "computer ethics" in school? This is how. Make him clean the school or suspend him for a day or something.
Someone says "pound me in the ass federal prison" and that somehow makes it a romance?
I sympathize. The government often screws people, and the armed forces screw the soldiers in a lot of ways. It's really sad. My friend is a marine and a lot of people try to screw them over.
On the other hand, I'm not sure that minimum separation laws are necessairly a bad thing. Too many people take marriage far too lightly in this society.
People don't know what DRM is, but they DO know what a virus is.
This isn't EXACTLY a virus, but it's VERY close, so call it that.
You're not enough of a salesperson. You're trying to be exact and precise about what you say--instead, give them a term they understand that is close to reality.
"Sony distributed a virus on their CD's in an attempt to break your CD drive so that it cannot copy their CD's. In addition, it opens your computer up so that it can get many other viruses, and it has the ability to report your usage back to Sony at any time."
That'll sell, and it's true.
Not to mention that he's previously contracted HIV...
Actually, the usual problem I've had with AMD chips are not the cpus, but the Via chipsets. K6's did have some problems, but Athlons have no stability issues that I know of. The K6's on Via chipsets had SERIOUS problems.
I've used 2 durons, 4 athlons, and I'm running an X2 at work now. They all run on Nvidia chipsets, and I have had ZERO problems (excluding defective hardware). My K6's on via chipsets use to give me headaches all the time... and I've had friends who run Athlons on Via's and they have problems too.
Just get a Nforce2 or Nforce4 chipset if you want to use AMD, or you'll hate them.
Grandparent, is your new AMD chipset a Nforce? That might be why you've had no stability problems with this one.
Of all the "dupes" that Slashdot can post, I'm personally glad for this one (it's not really a dupe as it provides extra information).
We're losing our rights, and the more media attention that BS like this gets, the better.
I think what the grandparent is saying is that instead of complaining that you don't feel you're getting paid enough, you probably should go out and start a company/find a new job. If enough people are getting screwed over by their employers (in the way you say they are), then you should have no problem assembling a good workforce and making a decent profit, both for yourself and for your workforce.
If you do that, you'll not only better yourself, but the world as well.
Of course, 90%+ of people don't do that--they don't have the initiative/motivation/desire to start a company and work/risk that, so instead they get employed. And if you're an employee, you are a commodity on the free market, just like any other--so don't complain when you think you're not valued by the market as you should be. You're not living in a third world country--you're living in a country with options. Go get another job at another company, or start your own. If there are no other jobs which pay what you want at other companies--then perhaps you're not as valuable as you think you are.
I'm not implying that you're lazy or out for entitlements. I'm just stating the facts about how a free market works. You could be a very dedicated, hardworking person, and I am in no way attacking you. If you have the skills, intelligence and dedication to start a company, the world could use a few more ethical ones.
The Mackinac bridge is 5 miles long (suspension) and is capable of surviving winds greater than mach 1, in wind tunnel tests.
I highly doubt that it's impossible to engineer a bridge to sustain whatever winds may be in the area.