If citizens aren't allowed to know what the government does, how can citizens help govern?
This is what being in a representative democracy is all about. You don't necessarily know what the gov't is doing. You have to trust your elected officials. If you don't like what they're doing (did) you just don't vote for them next time. It seems like a haphazard way to run things, but it has worked this far.
Remember that the NSA, CIA, and what have you do need to justify themselves to commitees of the officials you elect. So you are indirectly controlling how your tax dollars are spent.
I'd fly supersonic everywhere. What are they gonna do? Arrest me? I just blew 80M US on a jet, I can afford the fines and reparrations for damage. Maybe I can drop leaflets behind me saying, "For $ to fix your roof, call 1 (123) 555-1234".
And remembering these 11 digit numbers could be fun...
I've memorized my social security number, and I don't even use it on a regular (everyday/week) basis. The numbers are not the problem.
The real problem is the fact that every right to privacy group would scream bloody murder. Have you seen people's reactions to what they did at the Super Bowl last year? The cameras that find felons in the crowd? I didn't care about that, I mean, finding felons isn't a bad thing.
However, this makes me a little apprehensive. Ever read 1984 by Orwell? This calls that to mind. With everything being wireless now it would be easy for the government (the NSA already monitors practically every electronic signal in the world) to know that:
Number 12345678901: Cellular phone call from 8th and Maple. Withdrew $50 from ATM on corner of 9th and Maple. Etc.
I'm sure extremist are already envisioning numbers tatooed on people's foreheads. I don't think that would happen, but if this number became the only means of ID I would move to Ireland. (Dual citizenships are cool).
Here's a question for ya...
on
Dorm Storm?
·
· Score: 2
Why weren't there any question marks in that whole paragraph? Just a thought;)
That's cause caffeine helps make you smarter. Once I memorized the whole periodic table in about 15 minutes only using two cans of pepsi and the chart. Go caffeine!
Try playing it when you're 5 or 6. My cousin gave it to me and it absolutely scared the shit out of me. I couldn't get past the first level or two. To a little kid Doom was monsters under the bed brought to life.
1) Change the game to a Dragonball Z like mod. All they would have to do is change the faces of the characters. Just so they are not immediately recognizable. They would also have to change a few maps (like Kami's house).
2) Ask for donations. Check out the forums over there (links at the top of their page) and if everyone only sent $5 dollars they'd probably have enough for legal defense. Some lawyers might take it pro bono for publicity.
3) Get whichever company makes Quake (don't own it so I don't know) to help them. This is a mod for an existing game, so Funimations licensing may not cover it.
4) "Sneak" a copy or several hundred thousand out to the general public. Once it's out (and I've heard copies are already floating around) what is Funimation going to do? I envision an ICQ/ email/ etc distribution campaign. This is what I would do.
They have time, energy and particular physical and mental skills for gaming, developing software and navigating the Net.
This isn't different from anybody else (any other age group) in the world. Whoops.
They are smart, creative, and know the inner workings of the the Net and the Web better than any other sub-set of the species.
What's his point? Smart kids are capable of understanding stuff?
They do, in fact, have access to unprecedented amounts of information. Few parents, teachers, pols or reporters have any clear idea what these kids are doing online, or just how significant cultures like gaming and coding have become.
Now he's saying that kids can use Google, and adults can't figure it out. I bet he's also talking about pr0n, but who cares? These are just hobbies, and you can find them from 15 to 50.
The rest of the article just re-states the mindset of any teenager in an on-line context. It's kind of ridiculuous passing off this stuff as original. You can get the same stuff from any study of teenagers, and I'm kind of shocked he didn't include how teenagers misinterpret people's emotions and relate them to teenagers taking out their rage and frustration out on poor unsuspecting 40 year-olds in Quake.
Katz should leave this psychobabble to professionals.
Make people download a patch to be able to run a server. Easy. Just make them go to a page that will let them say "Yes, I've downloaded the patch" with a copy of the patch next to the button so it's easy to do it.
That any book they have is available free within the first 10 hours? The way I see it the only thing stopping me from copying the whole thing is the honor system, and we already saw how well that worked when a book was placed online.
Plot Holes: Yeah, but Luke is the "last of the Jedi" so he'd be eligible if he was 42 and bald.
Shallow Characterization: Hence the wide-spread appeal! People know who to love and who to hate, and Lucas backs this up. (People's emotions about the characters make them seem "deep" like you said.)
Cliched Dialog:"I can't believe he's gone." (Luke about Obi-Wan. He'd known him, what, a week or less?) "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid." (Han about the Jedi. Substitute the appropriate weaponry and it could have come from a spaghetti western.) "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers." (Leia to Tarkin. How many times has the plucky revolutionary said something similar to the dictator in numerous other settings?) Et cetera.
The lines might be cliches, but they're effective. To me, the movies weren't about romance. First and foremost they were action movies (with a smattering of several religions thrown in for flair and "depth").
Shoddy acting:By my count, only two actors were "stars" (Guinness and Ford, and Ford not until later). What were you expecting? I agree with the sentiment, but wasn't the first movie made with very low budget (I could be wrong, if I am forgive me) so they had to deal with bad acting, and had to keep the same people through the series.
Unfortunately the 10-year olds are where the money is. Not many people above 10 are going to get their Moms to buy figurines (of which Lucas gets a big cut). Nothing you can do...
I don't know if the LAN idea would work, but this would be a great idea if it did:
Instead of a normal LAN party (everybody in the same room) in a place where people were within a mile (I'm thinking dorm) Quake or CS would be great with next to nothing pings, but without the fuss of moving everything and getting it set up. Admittedly you lose the atmosphere, but I'd rather go for a few of these plus a regular LAN setup.
Sounds to me like project leaders grasping at any possible straw to keep their baby alive. (Actually, I approve of this one. I just hope the baby is born, and finds its way back into civilian space.)
Personally, because of this aspect alone, I think the whole thing is a good idea. Other people posted that once we have the first space-based (sub-orbital or not) weapon we're going to have to develop more weapons (in space) to combat other people's weapons (in space). Think Fighters/Bombers.
I've recently read a few good books about the Gemini and Apollo era of space exploration, and the one common theory I've seen in all of the books is, "America needs an idea or threat to organize around- like the Manhattan Project or the Apollo Progam- to do anything of significant import to great ideals." (Not having to do with their immediate lives).
What this means, is if our population is suddenly worried about what type of missle carrying satellite China just sent up the population will support weapons reasearch and deployment. NASA had a budget of 5,000,000,000 during the height of Apollo because the public cared. If it does again more advances in space will be made.
Also, the ramifications of this would not only affect the military, because space, at the moment, is only NASA's domain. If the Air Force or whomever wants to launch missiles (heavy payload) they're probably going to need NASA's help. This means NASA gets money to research rockets, launching platforms, and whatnot. Every advance made for the military also helps the exploration of space in general.
--
People Are Sheep
When Pericles (the monkey) landed his ship, and here's why:
Leo (the man) couldn't land his ship correctly at all. Can you believe this? He and the monkey go through the exact same thing (the storm I mean) and then TWICE Leo screws up. He's an idiot. --
People Are Sheep
"Fixed" means a winner is decided before hand. Think Don King. What you mean is the competitors get a little help. Some people might argue this is crap and ruins the spirit of the show, but would you like to see a couple of hovercrafts that didn't work? Or just 1 that worked? Of course not, and because TLC needs some ratings as well as a cool show, the junkyard is seeded.
P.S.- I've also heard that in Britain there are laws about the quality of parts, so, (let's take the rockets, for instance) the engines are certified and seeded in the junkyard.
I think most of the public's (anticipated) negative reaction will be do the "uh-oh, this Nuke is gonna someohow hit my house" phenomenon. This could be solved (rather simply) by finding the lowest pop. density on the planet. The Outback was the first thing that came to mind, but there're probably "unofficial" Aboriginees (sp?) that must be taken into account.
Now, the next solution would be Antarctica. The only problem I see here is the prohibitive transport/ personnel costs. People might not like to live down there ya know? But still, it's a viable option. Who would care if a Nuke (ahhh!) blew up in down there. (NB: I know there's no real danger of it blowing up like a big bomb).
My final option, which is purely a guess, I dunno if this would work or not, is to do it on the water. I'm talking in the middle of the ocean. We have these huge super-tankers (I think they're being give names like "Ultra-Super Cargo Carriers" now) why can't we use one of them for a launch? Or, if they're too unstable, (they're fairly stable, and would be more so if you loaded them with a lot of ballast, but that's no guuarantee) make it a barge. For this, the only problem is weather, as the ship roll way to much to even carry a rocket into the ocean.
This would be pretty cool, IMO, and I think a ship could be made stable enough to put a rocket into orbit... Could a rocket handle a few feet off level? The whole setup would need to be tested extensively, but I bet it could work.
Cheap Ploy to Gain Public Acceptane for Space
on
Movies in Space?
·
· Score: 2
Well, it is isn't it? NASA (and the space-going community at large) are trying to get the public to support the space program like it did when we were going to the moon. Personally, I'd rather see us go back to the moon, but I guess a movie would bring more (political and approval) results.
Slashdot Mirror
Isn't this an awful time to have an IPO?
If citizens aren't allowed to know what the government does, how can citizens help govern?
This is what being in a representative democracy is all about. You don't necessarily know what the gov't is doing. You have to trust your elected officials. If you don't like what they're doing (did) you just don't vote for them next time. It seems like a haphazard way to run things, but it has worked this far.
Remember that the NSA, CIA, and what have you do need to justify themselves to commitees of the officials you elect. So you are indirectly controlling how your tax dollars are spent.
Or drink one small cup of coffee, and make up for it with 3 later.
I'd fly supersonic everywhere. What are they gonna do? Arrest me? I just blew 80M US on a jet, I can afford the fines and reparrations for damage. Maybe I can drop leaflets behind me saying, "For $ to fix your roof, call 1 (123) 555-1234".
Take it as a joke.
And remembering these 11 digit numbers could be fun ...
I've memorized my social security number, and I don't even use it on a regular (everyday/week) basis. The numbers are not the problem.
The real problem is the fact that every right to privacy group would scream bloody murder. Have you seen people's reactions to what they did at the Super Bowl last year? The cameras that find felons in the crowd? I didn't care about that, I mean, finding felons isn't a bad thing.
However, this makes me a little apprehensive. Ever read 1984 by Orwell? This calls that to mind. With everything being wireless now it would be easy for the government (the NSA already monitors practically every electronic signal in the world) to know that:
Number 12345678901: Cellular phone call from 8th and Maple. Withdrew $50 from ATM on corner of 9th and Maple.
Etc.
I'm sure extremist are already envisioning numbers tatooed on people's foreheads. I don't think that would happen, but if this number became the only means of ID I would move to Ireland. (Dual citizenships are cool).
Why weren't there any question marks in that whole paragraph? Just a thought ;)
That's cause caffeine helps make you smarter. Once I memorized the whole periodic table in about 15 minutes only using two cans of pepsi and the chart. Go caffeine!
Praise : From T Models to Space Shuttles Dutch has it! Great Fellow A+++
Looks like he already sold a space shuttle... I'm impressed.
I'd put a space shuttle in my front yard.
Try playing it when you're 5 or 6. My cousin gave it to me and it absolutely scared the shit out of me. I couldn't get past the first level or two. To a little kid Doom was monsters under the bed brought to life.
They have four options:
1) Change the game to a Dragonball Z like mod. All they would have to do is change the faces of the characters. Just so they are not immediately recognizable. They would also have to change a few maps (like Kami's house).
2) Ask for donations. Check out the forums over there (links at the top of their page) and if everyone only sent $5 dollars they'd probably have enough for legal defense. Some lawyers might take it pro bono for publicity.
3) Get whichever company makes Quake (don't own it so I don't know) to help them. This is a mod for an existing game, so Funimations licensing may not cover it.
4) "Sneak" a copy or several hundred thousand out to the general public. Once it's out (and I've heard copies are already floating around) what is Funimation going to do? I envision an ICQ/ email/ etc distribution campaign. This is what I would do.
We all know why guys go on the net; games and PORN
This is all Katz needed to write. Right here.
They have time, energy and particular physical and mental skills for gaming, developing software and navigating the Net.
This isn't different from anybody else (any other age group) in the world. Whoops.
They are smart, creative, and know the inner workings of the the Net and the Web better than any other sub-set of the species.
What's his point? Smart kids are capable of understanding stuff?
They do, in fact, have access to unprecedented amounts of information. Few parents, teachers, pols or reporters have any clear idea what these kids are doing online, or just how significant cultures like gaming and coding have become.
Now he's saying that kids can use Google, and adults can't figure it out. I bet he's also talking about pr0n, but who cares? These are just hobbies, and you can find them from 15 to 50.
The rest of the article just re-states the mindset of any teenager in an on-line context. It's kind of ridiculuous passing off this stuff as original. You can get the same stuff from any study of teenagers, and I'm kind of shocked he didn't include how teenagers misinterpret people's emotions and relate them to teenagers taking out their rage and frustration out on poor unsuspecting 40 year-olds in Quake.
Katz should leave this psychobabble to professionals.
So my calculator uses as much power as his server... ouch
Make people download a patch to be able to run a server. Easy. Just make them go to a page that will let them say "Yes, I've downloaded the patch" with a copy of the patch next to the button so it's easy to do it.
That any book they have is available free within the first 10 hours? The way I see it the only thing stopping me from copying the whole thing is the honor system, and we already saw how well that worked when a book was placed online.
According to it I don't have it (and I know I don't) so it either works or is just going to provide everyone who DOES have it with a nice surprise.
An ending to the case! No more appeals, something has to be decided... No matter what the decision, I'm happy.
Plot Holes: Yeah, but Luke is the "last of the Jedi" so he'd be eligible if he was 42 and bald.
Shallow Characterization: Hence the wide-spread appeal! People know who to love and who to hate, and Lucas backs this up. (People's emotions about the characters make them seem "deep" like you said.)
Cliched Dialog:"I can't believe he's gone." (Luke about Obi-Wan. He'd known him, what, a week or less?) "Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid." (Han about the Jedi. Substitute the appropriate weaponry and it could have come from a spaghetti western.) "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers." (Leia to Tarkin. How many times has the plucky revolutionary said something similar to the dictator in numerous other settings?) Et cetera.
The lines might be cliches, but they're effective. To me, the movies weren't about romance. First and foremost they were action movies (with a smattering of several religions thrown in for flair and "depth").
Shoddy acting:By my count, only two actors were "stars" (Guinness and Ford, and Ford not until later). What were you expecting? I agree with the sentiment, but wasn't the first movie made with very low budget (I could be wrong, if I am forgive me) so they had to deal with bad acting, and had to keep the same people through the series.
Unfortunately the 10-year olds are where the money is. Not many people above 10 are going to get their Moms to buy figurines (of which Lucas gets a big cut). Nothing you can do...
I don't know if the LAN idea would work, but this would be a great idea if it did:
Instead of a normal LAN party (everybody in the same room) in a place where people were within a mile (I'm thinking dorm) Quake or CS would be great with next to nothing pings, but without the fuss of moving everything and getting it set up. Admittedly you lose the atmosphere, but I'd rather go for a few of these plus a regular LAN setup.
Sounds to me like project leaders grasping at any possible straw to keep their baby alive. (Actually, I approve of this one. I just hope the baby is born, and finds its way back into civilian space.)
Personally, because of this aspect alone, I think the whole thing is a good idea. Other people posted that once we have the first space-based (sub-orbital or not) weapon we're going to have to develop more weapons (in space) to combat other people's weapons (in space). Think Fighters/Bombers.
I've recently read a few good books about the Gemini and Apollo era of space exploration, and the one common theory I've seen in all of the books is, "America needs an idea or threat to organize around- like the Manhattan Project or the Apollo Progam- to do anything of significant import to great ideals." (Not having to do with their immediate lives).
What this means, is if our population is suddenly worried about what type of missle carrying satellite China just sent up the population will support weapons reasearch and deployment. NASA had a budget of 5,000,000,000 during the height of Apollo because the public cared. If it does again more advances in space will be made.
Also, the ramifications of this would not only affect the military, because space, at the moment, is only NASA's domain. If the Air Force or whomever wants to launch missiles (heavy payload) they're probably going to need NASA's help. This means NASA gets money to research rockets, launching platforms, and whatnot. Every advance made for the military also helps the exploration of space in general.
--
People Are Sheep
When Pericles (the monkey) landed his ship, and here's why:
Leo (the man) couldn't land his ship correctly at all. Can you believe this? He and the monkey go through the exact same thing (the storm I mean) and then TWICE Leo screws up. He's an idiot.
--
People Are Sheep
"Fixed" means a winner is decided before hand. Think Don King. What you mean is the competitors get a little help. Some people might argue this is crap and ruins the spirit of the show, but would you like to see a couple of hovercrafts that didn't work? Or just 1 that worked? Of course not, and because TLC needs some ratings as well as a cool show, the junkyard is seeded.
P.S.- I've also heard that in Britain there are laws about the quality of parts, so, (let's take the rockets, for instance) the engines are certified and seeded in the junkyard.
I think most of the public's (anticipated) negative reaction will be do the "uh-oh, this Nuke is gonna someohow hit my house" phenomenon. This could be solved (rather simply) by finding the lowest pop. density on the planet. The Outback was the first thing that came to mind, but there're probably "unofficial" Aboriginees (sp?) that must be taken into account.
Now, the next solution would be Antarctica. The only problem I see here is the prohibitive transport/ personnel costs. People might not like to live down there ya know? But still, it's a viable option. Who would care if a Nuke (ahhh!) blew up in down there. (NB: I know there's no real danger of it blowing up like a big bomb).
My final option, which is purely a guess, I dunno if this would work or not, is to do it on the water. I'm talking in the middle of the ocean. We have these huge super-tankers (I think they're being give names like "Ultra-Super Cargo Carriers" now) why can't we use one of them for a launch? Or, if they're too unstable, (they're fairly stable, and would be more so if you loaded them with a lot of ballast, but that's no guuarantee) make it a barge. For this, the only problem is weather, as the ship roll way to much to even carry a rocket into the ocean.
This would be pretty cool, IMO, and I think a ship could be made stable enough to put a rocket into orbit... Could a rocket handle a few feet off level? The whole setup would need to be tested extensively, but I bet it could work.
Well, it is isn't it? NASA (and the space-going community at large) are trying to get the public to support the space program like it did when we were going to the moon. Personally, I'd rather see us go back to the moon, but I guess a movie would bring more (political and approval) results.