You ain't kidding about the overreach of corporations in SK. It's as close to a real-life Omni Consumer Products as it's going to get.
In Korea, it's possible to leave from your Samsung-constructed apartment complex using the Samsung-constructed elevator, and get into your Samsung-built car to drive to a Samsung-owned eatery before going to work in a Samsung subsidiary.
" I have asked my Japanese friends and they have never even heard of it."
My numerous personal anecdotes say otherwise. They're just too ashamed to admit it, as they may know what Westerners/non-Japanese think about that stuff.
There are many people in Korea who will never admit to foreigners that they know someone who's eaten dog meat.
" dvd rental stores are for grandmas that don't have/understand the world wide net or for people living in small outport villages in arctic Alaska with dial up Internet."
I'm in my early 30s and live in Seattle. I rent Blu-Rays from Red Box occasionally because streaming doesn't get you 5.1 surround sound and HD picture. But I guess my needs are in the minority of consumers.
Speaking of Schoenberg, I was listening to a John Adams concert the other night. He was conducting a performance of Harmonielehre. I knew nothing about it, other than that it was composed in the mid-80s. Ten seconds into it, I was getting into it more and more, and realized that the entire thing was the background soundtrack to Civilization 4. Because I have heard it more than a thousand times just playing the game, I knew the music quite well subconsciously and thereby enjoying the music probably much more than I would have otherwise. The people sitting around me have never heard his music and were not quite as impressed.
The average elderly Romney voter would go to the nearest public library, ask for help from the library staff, print out the PDF for free, then vote against their local library levy.
Your roads and your electrical / water / utility grids are subsidized at a much higher rate per capita than urban areas. Your low cost of living is a direct result of tax dollars paying to deliver all modern conveniences and energy sources to your community - again at a much higher per capita rate than urban areas. Private companies refused to electrify rural areas as they could not recoup their investments. The postal service delivers mail and packages to/fro your community at a loss that is made up by urban dwellers. I could go on and on here...
Having lived in my voting age primarily in OR and WA, it's like going to the zoo and viewing exotic animals every time I see people lining up at the polls on TV.
I mail hundreds of packages every month via USPS, Fedex, and UPS in more or less equal numbers for each service. Let's just say I haven't had to go deal with the USPS in person in the last 3 years. I can't say the same about Fedex and UPS (UPS is better than Fedex, though, in terms of reliabiility).
Many manufacturers use loads of Chinese-sourced parts already. Honda already exports Chinese-manufactured Fits to Canada. Many Japanese makes have started moving their operations more south - down to Kyushu - to be closer to parts vendors in China. Though with the latest anti-Japanese riots in China, the Japanese makers are now buttering up the Burmese regime to set up factories there. Japanese auto factories are emptying out faster than it ever did for the Big Three in the Midwest.
Clunkers did play a role, but probably not as big of one as you think.
People are keeping their cars longer (average 11 years, possible now due to vastly improved quality across the board), and many good used cars are being shipped to new overseas consumers (SE Asia, former Soviet bloc) both bringing used car prices for 3-5 year models within 15% of a new car's price.
One theory I keep thinking about is - why SHOULD a new car depreciate 20%-30% the moment you drive it off the lot? The functionality of the car doesn't diminish by 20%-30% during this time. This depreciation cliff made more sense when crappy domestic makes required a new transmission at 25k miles. But with cars routinely making 100k-150k at the very minimum without blinking an eye (except German makes, of course), maybe the market is responding to the fact that the functionality of a car over its now increased lifespan should be reflect a less steep depreciation curve.
As if they wouldn't have been bulldozed economically and/or militarily over by its vengeful neighbors a decade later had the US not come and got their back. Also economically, both Japan and Europe got quite a head start on rebuilding with massive US assistance. Without their huge head start, would Japan be where they are today had their, say, cars been competing head to head with Korean and Chinese models of equal quality?
Don't forget that the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere was the ultimate result of a "broken, dysfunctional culture of perpetual victimhood, lecherousness, filth and ignorance". Everything but the "laziness" you described.
Do what anyone would normally do in a company - write an email to the principal/administrator and have them basically put on (electronic) paper that you have permission. CYA.
Slashdot Mirror
Hmmm...good idea for a name for a pub/grill near the Microsoft campus...
You ain't kidding about the overreach of corporations in SK. It's as close to a real-life Omni Consumer Products as it's going to get.
In Korea, it's possible to leave from your Samsung-constructed apartment complex using the Samsung-constructed elevator, and get into your Samsung-built car to drive to a Samsung-owned eatery before going to work in a Samsung subsidiary.
" I have asked my Japanese friends and they have never even heard of it."
My numerous personal anecdotes say otherwise. They're just too ashamed to admit it, as they may know what Westerners/non-Japanese think about that stuff.
There are many people in Korea who will never admit to foreigners that they know someone who's eaten dog meat.
" dvd rental stores are for grandmas that don't have/understand the world wide net or for people living in small outport villages in arctic Alaska with dial up Internet."
I'm in my early 30s and live in Seattle. I rent Blu-Rays from Red Box occasionally because streaming doesn't get you 5.1 surround sound and HD picture. But I guess my needs are in the minority of consumers.
Speaking of Schoenberg, I was listening to a John Adams concert the other night. He was conducting a performance of Harmonielehre. I knew nothing about it, other than that it was composed in the mid-80s. Ten seconds into it, I was getting into it more and more, and realized that the entire thing was the background soundtrack to Civilization 4. Because I have heard it more than a thousand times just playing the game, I knew the music quite well subconsciously and thereby enjoying the music probably much more than I would have otherwise. The people sitting around me have never heard his music and were not quite as impressed.
Your peso is dropping against the dollar, and oil is priced in dollars.
$1USD was 3.70ARS when I last visited Argentina. Now it's close to 5ARS?
The average elderly Romney voter would go to the nearest public library, ask for help from the library staff, print out the PDF for free, then vote against their local library levy.
Your roads and your electrical / water / utility grids are subsidized at a much higher rate per capita than urban areas. Your low cost of living is a direct result of tax dollars paying to deliver all modern conveniences and energy sources to your community - again at a much higher per capita rate than urban areas. Private companies refused to electrify rural areas as they could not recoup their investments. The postal service delivers mail and packages to/fro your community at a loss that is made up by urban dwellers. I could go on and on here...
I actually know the family in person, but I've never step food in that grease pit (both the old one and the new one).
Having lived in my voting age primarily in OR and WA, it's like going to the zoo and viewing exotic animals every time I see people lining up at the polls on TV.
I mail hundreds of packages every month via USPS, Fedex, and UPS in more or less equal numbers for each service. Let's just say I haven't had to go deal with the USPS in person in the last 3 years. I can't say the same about Fedex and UPS (UPS is better than Fedex, though, in terms of reliabiility).
Seattle to Portland is only 174 miles one way.
Most "religious people" aren't really religious. I find that comforting and reassuring. Even people that claim to be devout just really aren't...
Turns out Americans go the church about as much as the "godless" Europeans - except Europeans don't lie about it nearly as much.
You can put the PC to sleep. It'll wake at the designated time and do the Windows Update cycle, then go back to sleep.
Texas and Oklahoma both execute a higher percentage of its population than China does.
It was talked about in the cited article - not exactly zero. Let's not pretend one group of people is inherently more enlightened than another, if given similar upbringing and circumstances.
Last Temptation of Christ comes to mind.
In 2 or 3 years, the Chinese are coming
Many manufacturers use loads of Chinese-sourced parts already. Honda already exports Chinese-manufactured Fits to Canada. Many Japanese makes have started moving their operations more south - down to Kyushu - to be closer to parts vendors in China. Though with the latest anti-Japanese riots in China, the Japanese makers are now buttering up the Burmese regime to set up factories there. Japanese auto factories are emptying out faster than it ever did for the Big Three in the Midwest.
Clunkers did play a role, but probably not as big of one as you think.
People are keeping their cars longer (average 11 years, possible now due to vastly improved quality across the board), and many good used cars are being shipped to new overseas consumers (SE Asia, former Soviet bloc) both bringing used car prices for 3-5 year models within 15% of a new car's price.
One theory I keep thinking about is - why SHOULD a new car depreciate 20%-30% the moment you drive it off the lot? The functionality of the car doesn't diminish by 20%-30% during this time. This depreciation cliff made more sense when crappy domestic makes required a new transmission at 25k miles. But with cars routinely making 100k-150k at the very minimum without blinking an eye (except German makes, of course), maybe the market is responding to the fact that the functionality of a car over its now increased lifespan should be reflect a less steep depreciation curve.
And this will be the instructions for the ATM.
Some updates needed:
Vietnamese - fish sauce.
Thais - more pungent fish sauce.
Hawaiians - Spam.
Filipinos also love Maggi sauce.
Or own a stick shift in N. America.
http://www.newschannel9.com/news/top-stories/stories/deputies-carjackers-busted-couldnt-drive-stick-shift-2202.shtml
As if they wouldn't have been bulldozed economically and/or militarily over by its vengeful neighbors a decade later had the US not come and got their back. Also economically, both Japan and Europe got quite a head start on rebuilding with massive US assistance. Without their huge head start, would Japan be where they are today had their, say, cars been competing head to head with Korean and Chinese models of equal quality?
Don't forget that the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere was the ultimate result of a "broken, dysfunctional culture of perpetual victimhood, lecherousness, filth and ignorance". Everything but the "laziness" you described.
Do what anyone would normally do in a company - write an email to the principal/administrator and have them basically put on (electronic) paper that you have permission. CYA.
I have a lemon 20MB Quantum hard drive in an ancient box. It's a lemon because it still reads and writes!