[E]veryone should vote against every incumbent in Washington this year...
...and every year. Do your part and join, support, and vote for one of the "little" parties. I don't really care which one -- just not one of the two major parties. It's easy to bitch and moan about how crappy the status quo is; put your money where your mouth is and *do* something about it. Voting is good, money is great, and time contributed is the best!
[Disclaimer: For the last 3 years, I myself have been a State Treasurer for one of those little parties -- and we will *never quit* harassing the major parties, who long ago abandoned any semblance of principles. They can't fool us, they can't buy us, and they can't stop us.]
Who would do better at the 100m freestyle, Jesus or Mohammad?
They were both raised in desert lands, so probably neither could swim -- but Jesus would win by walking on the water (it's not specifically disallowed!)
Erm, if the side you're speaking of is the one I'm thinking of, the LAST time they "tried" to give us universal health care "in the first 100 days!" they ended up bringing us HMOs and PPOs... which, from a guy who worked for years in a medical office, has done far more damage to American health care, and many of us STILL have no coverage.
Ummmm, it was Nixon who bought us the HMO, not Clinton, if I understand your attempted innuendo. Sorry to put a gaping hole in your argument. I still agree with your point about the damage done to American health care.
"There are a lot of things I look at and scratch my head," said Tim Arnold, who ran an arcade during a heyday of pinball in the 1970s and recently opened The Pinball Hall of Fame, a nonprofit museum in a Las Vegas strip mall. "Why are people playing games on their cellphones while they write e-mail? I don't get it." "The thing that's killing pinball," Mr. Arnold added, "is not that people don't like it. It's that there's nowhere to play it."
Is that the Tim Arnold who started Pinball Pete's in East Lansing? Dude! I used to play at the original Pinball Pete's out by Coral Gables (before you moved downtown on MAC) -- remember that dinky little building with the elephant on the roof? I'll stop in and see you next time I'm in Vegas.
If you have a third player in the mix, let alone many players, that destablizes this balance.
Except that it only works if the third party is approximately the same size as the other two parties.
Right now there are *at least* four viable parties in America: the Dems, Reps, Libertarians and Greens. So far there has been *no* appreciable change in the political system. Your theory falls on the facts.
This is the same reason that IRV doesn't really work: The parties have to all be near to the same size for people to conceive that their candidate (if he/she is from a smaller party) has a chance, and thus is worth voting for.
But Wagner and Sancho's court papers raise theoretical scenarios in which the LHC could create particles that gobble up the Earth, such as "killer strangelets". Strangelets are hypothetical blobs of matter containing "strange" quarks, as well as the usual "up" and "down" types that make up ordinary matter. If a strangelet were stable and negatively charged, it might begin eating the nuclei of ordinary matter, converting them into strange matter. Eventually the menacing chain reaction could assimilate our entire planet and everyone on it.
Hooray for the followers of scientism -- they will always come up with a way!
'Liberal' and 'conservative' are poor labels to use, in that their wide use (and misuse) renders them almost meaningless. The two labels, in fact, no longer even mean what they *originally* meant when invented long ago in Britain.
Besides, any Libertarian will be glad to point out that they see their political position on a 2-D *map*, not a 1-D *line*: fiscally 'conservative', socially 'liberal'. How is M$oft going to code *that*?
'The number of unsolved crimes says we are not sampling enough of the right people,' Pugh told The Observer. However, he said the notion of universal sampling - everyone being forced to give their genetic samples to the database - is currently prohibited by cost and logistics.
And *not* by the right of free people to conduct their business without any interference from the state???
I say, if the politicians *want* to do this, then they should go first -- publicly. What do you want to bet that we'll catch a few of *them*? (And let's not forget doing all the cops too -- like this Pugh fellow. As we've seen from the Spitzer, Cunningham and Craig cases here in the US, it's always the ones who want to *crack down* that are the dirtiest.)
(Just a coincidence -- but the CAPTCHA wants me to enter the word "felony" to post this message. Hmmm...)
I read TFA and it looks like all of these grants are about incrementally improving *old* solar technologies. Oh well -- just as generals are all about fighting the last war, I suppose DOE bureaucrats are all about improving old solar power paradigms.
One thing which I have rarely heard about is this: where are the solar technologies based on *ultraviolet* [shorter wavelength than visible] radiation? It doesn't take a physicist to realize that ultraviolet rays -- because they contain more energy -- would be a logical step forward in the harnessing of solar radiation technology. The same sunlight, if captured in the ultraviolet range, would generate electricity more efficiently than visible-ray capturing technology.
Pretty ironic, considering the immense wealth of the Catholic Church. I think we all know what Jesus would say: "Take all you have and give it to the poor." [Matthew 19:20-22]
The closed-door debate was scheduled for late Thursday night, after the House chamber could be cleared and swept by security personnel to make sure there are no listening devices.
Like those pesky varmints WE THE PEOPLE. Those guys are always prying, peeking over our shoulders, trying to figure out what we're doing in their name. Dang, I hate that!
So, the only purpose of a 3rd party is to draw votes from another party. Deciding to run in a 3rd party does not mean you're presenting a 3rd choice. It means that you're attempting to draw votes from the major party that agrees with you the most.
And... what if you don't agree with the two major parties? What if you agree with Nader's position that the two major parties *have sold out our government* to the corporations? There *is* -- and always has been -- a reason for the existence of third (and fourth) parties: the two major parties *fail* to represent an alternative point of view.
In fact the status quo already fails us in two separate ways, which gives rise to the two major third parties: the governement fails to grant us the freedom guaranteed to us by our own Constitution (thus the Libertarians), yet it fails to protect us from the excess of business *and* fails to adequately reflect the myriad points of view outside of its own self-satisfied viewpoint (thus the Green Party).
I suppose, if you only possess the intelligence of an average American, you see nothing wrong with letting someone else decide how your life should be. Don't the 'governing experts' already know better? This 'docile vote' is exactly why we keep getting people into power who promise change and then cannot deliver it. Their hands are tied by the compromises they made to get into power. Even *if* Obama -- say -- becomes President, you will quickly discover the compromises that *he* made, by noting the areas in which he avoids taking significant action.
The losses to the atmosphere will have a significant effect on the weather and chemistry of the atmosphere through which it passes.
A reasonable concern. That is why the solar energy is converted to high-energy, point-to-point microwaves *before* being beamed down; that way, the effect on the weather and chemistry is minimized because the beam is narrow. That is also why I picked deserts *near* dense population centers, but not *in* them -- we don't want anyone to get fried if the beam shifts slightly! 8^P
Your idea of collecting or reflecting cosmic rays -- which have a *lot* more energy in each one than thermally emitted rays -- is intriguing. I am not sure of a couple of things:
1) Do we know of any material which would be *capable* of collecting or reflecting cosmic rays? Those things pack quite a wallop!
2) Are there *enough* cosmic rays hitting the earth to make collecting them feasible? Or would there be enough energy in each cosmic ray to compensate for how few of them that there might be?
IndustrialComplex: Hi. First, I'd like to apologize for making you the target of my bad day. That was unfair. I would also like to withdraw my aggressively egregious comment about you being "a rule-following toady"; that was completely uncalled for. I am sorry.
I would like to say, too, that I am *not* making you out to be a nazi; if I had been, I was in a foul enough mood to have thrown that in there. However, I *was* implying that you were a 'good German' -- which, upon reflection, isn't fair either. 8^P
I have gone back and re-read your posts on this issue; I see that you say "For the record, I would LIKE to be against a national ID, I get the feeling that there is something wrong with it. I simply don't like to be against something, without having facts and rational arguments to back up my position." I have to admit that this is, indeed, a reasonable stand to take on this issue. It is clear to me now that I let my prejudices overrun my rationality. I will try to do better in the future.
There is nothing wrong with someone asking you to confirm that you are the person you claim to be.
So this is what "trust, but verify" has degenerated to?
I think we could remove a lot of the opposition to this plan by adding a few restrictions.
1. Enumerate exactly when you can be requested to present your ID.
You mean, like some kind of... Constitution, or something... for ID? Fascinating!
I am very conservative (small government conservative
No. You are *not*. If you actually *were*, you would be *100% against* the 'single, national ID': the ultimate expression of the all-powerful state. You are a rule-following toady, and would have been completely at home in Germany in the 1930s.
Really. Giant mirrors in space beaming solar energy down via microwaves to the Sahara [Africa], Gobi [Mongolia], Empty Quarter {Saudi Arabia] or Sonoran [Arizona, USA] deserts (chosen for their lack of people and access to nearby large populations) instantly solves the energy crisis. And they wouldn't be *that* expensive.
In at least 2 movies, the fact that one of the characters learned how to fly using a simulator on Playstation is a significant plot point.
In Snakes on a Plane, Kenan Thompson's character lands a 767 using his knowledge. In the upcoming Fool's Gold, Matthew McConeguay's (sp?) character also learned flying that way. However, from the Fool's Gold trailer, it looks like Kenan's character paid more attention.
Also since the "country of second life" is not part [of] any one country or the U.N., there are no federal or international laws applicable in the wor[l]d of second life.
Poster is incorrect. As the TOS clearly states, Linden Lab operates under the rules of the state of California.
The so-called money is *not* money, but a *license* to utilize Second Life's property. However, if a person *chooses* to give their "money" to someone else, that is a *personal decision*, and they shouldn't be surprised when that someone else decides not to give it back.
I chalk the whole fiasco up to people thinking that a bank in RL and a "bank" in SL are the same thing. They are not. Caveat emptor is operational no matter which 'life' you are in.
I don't see how they can "copyright" images of the pyramids since a) they are clearly not the original designers; b) these have been 'in the public domain' for >3000 years. This would be like the United States suddenly claiming a copyright over the design of all buildings on the Capitol Mall, like the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and the Smithsonian -- even though that entity did not actually design or construct *any* of them.
But since Egypt is a one-party state, I guess they will go ahead and do anything they want, like any centralized dictatorship.
No particular comment here -- I just want people to note my long-time.sig. It does raise interesting questions on exactly how a deterministic Turing machine is able to give rise to unpredictable behavior.
Slashdot Mirror
[E]veryone should vote against every incumbent in Washington this year...
[Disclaimer: For the last 3 years, I myself have been a State Treasurer for one of those little parties -- and we will *never quit* harassing the major parties, who long ago abandoned any semblance of principles. They can't fool us, they can't buy us, and they can't stop us.]
Who would do better at the 100m freestyle, Jesus or Mohammad?
They were both raised in desert lands, so probably neither could swim -- but Jesus would win by walking on the water (it's not specifically disallowed!)
He'll be gone in six months.
But not forgotten.
Bring Bush to trial. And that Dick Cheney too.
Erm, if the side you're speaking of is the one I'm thinking of, the LAST time they "tried" to give us universal health care "in the first 100 days!" they ended up bringing us HMOs and PPOs... which, from a guy who worked for years in a medical office, has done far more damage to American health care, and many of us STILL have no coverage.
Ummmm, it was Nixon who bought us the HMO, not Clinton, if I understand your attempted innuendo. Sorry to put a gaping hole in your argument. I still agree with your point about the damage done to American health care.
Is that the Tim Arnold who started Pinball Pete's in East Lansing? Dude! I used to play at the original Pinball Pete's out by Coral Gables (before you moved downtown on MAC) -- remember that dinky little building with the elephant on the roof? I'll stop in and see you next time I'm in Vegas.
(P.S. How's your brother doing?)
The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution is a *better* freedom-enforcement tool -- *and* it has been used a lot longer than this new-fangled DNA stuff.
Except that it only works if the third party is approximately the same size as the other two parties.
Right now there are *at least* four viable parties in America: the Dems, Reps, Libertarians and Greens. So far there has been *no* appreciable change in the political system. Your theory falls on the facts.
This is the same reason that IRV doesn't really work: The parties have to all be near to the same size for people to conceive that their candidate (if he/she is from a smaller party) has a chance, and thus is worth voting for.
Hooray for the followers of scientism -- they will always come up with a way!
Besides, any Libertarian will be glad to point out that they see their political position on a 2-D *map*, not a 1-D *line*: fiscally 'conservative', socially 'liberal'. How is M$oft going to code *that*?
And *not* by the right of free people to conduct their business without any interference from the state???
I say, if the politicians *want* to do this, then they should go first -- publicly. What do you want to bet that we'll catch a few of *them*? (And let's not forget doing all the cops too -- like this Pugh fellow. As we've seen from the Spitzer, Cunningham and Craig cases here in the US, it's always the ones who want to *crack down* that are the dirtiest.)
(Just a coincidence -- but the CAPTCHA wants me to enter the word "felony" to post this message. Hmmm...)
One thing which I have rarely heard about is this: where are the solar technologies based on *ultraviolet* [shorter wavelength than visible] radiation? It doesn't take a physicist to realize that ultraviolet rays -- because they contain more energy -- would be a logical step forward in the harnessing of solar radiation technology. The same sunlight, if captured in the ultraviolet range, would generate electricity more efficiently than visible-ray capturing technology.
Pretty ironic, considering the immense wealth of the Catholic Church. I think we all know what Jesus would say: "Take all you have and give it to the poor." [Matthew 19:20-22]
Like those pesky varmints WE THE PEOPLE. Those guys are always prying, peeking over our shoulders, trying to figure out what we're doing in their name. Dang, I hate that!
And... what if you don't agree with the two major parties? What if you agree with Nader's position that the two major parties *have sold out our government* to the corporations? There *is* -- and always has been -- a reason for the existence of third (and fourth) parties: the two major parties *fail* to represent an alternative point of view.
In fact the status quo already fails us in two separate ways, which gives rise to the two major third parties: the governement fails to grant us the freedom guaranteed to us by our own Constitution (thus the Libertarians), yet it fails to protect us from the excess of business *and* fails to adequately reflect the myriad points of view outside of its own self-satisfied viewpoint (thus the Green Party).
I suppose, if you only possess the intelligence of an average American, you see nothing wrong with letting someone else decide how your life should be. Don't the 'governing experts' already know better? This 'docile vote' is exactly why we keep getting people into power who promise change and then cannot deliver it. Their hands are tied by the compromises they made to get into power. Even *if* Obama -- say -- becomes President, you will quickly discover the compromises that *he* made, by noting the areas in which he avoids taking significant action.
Don't try to hurt other people.
There.
A reasonable concern. That is why the solar energy is converted to high-energy, point-to-point microwaves *before* being beamed down; that way, the effect on the weather and chemistry is minimized because the beam is narrow. That is also why I picked deserts *near* dense population centers, but not *in* them -- we don't want anyone to get fried if the beam shifts slightly! 8^P
Your idea of collecting or reflecting cosmic rays -- which have a *lot* more energy in each one than thermally emitted rays -- is intriguing. I am not sure of a couple of things:
1) Do we know of any material which would be *capable* of collecting or reflecting cosmic rays? Those things pack quite a wallop!
2) Are there *enough* cosmic rays hitting the earth to make collecting them feasible? Or would there be enough energy in each cosmic ray to compensate for how few of them that there might be?
I would like to say, too, that I am *not* making you out to be a nazi; if I had been, I was in a foul enough mood to have thrown that in there. However, I *was* implying that you were a 'good German' -- which, upon reflection, isn't fair either. 8^P
I have gone back and re-read your posts on this issue; I see that you say "For the record, I would LIKE to be against a national ID, I get the feeling that there is something wrong with it. I simply don't like to be against something, without having facts and rational arguments to back up my position." I have to admit that this is, indeed, a reasonable stand to take on this issue. It is clear to me now that I let my prejudices overrun my rationality. I will try to do better in the future.
Again, my apologies for being a flamedick.
--Randym
So this is what "trust, but verify" has degenerated to?
I think we could remove a lot of the opposition to this plan by adding a few restrictions.
1. Enumerate exactly when you can be requested to present your ID.
You mean, like some kind of ... Constitution, or something ... for ID? Fascinating!
I am very conservative (small government conservative
No. You are *not*. If you actually *were*, you would be *100% against* the 'single, national ID': the ultimate expression of the all-powerful state. You are a rule-following toady, and would have been completely at home in Germany in the 1930s.
In Snakes on a Plane, Kenan Thompson's character lands a 767 using his knowledge. In the upcoming Fool's Gold, Matthew McConeguay's (sp?) character also learned flying that way. However, from the Fool's Gold trailer, it looks like Kenan's character paid more attention.
Poster is incorrect. As the TOS clearly states, Linden Lab operates under the rules of the state of California.
The so-called money is *not* money, but a *license* to utilize Second Life's property. However, if a person *chooses* to give their "money" to someone else, that is a *personal decision*, and they shouldn't be surprised when that someone else decides not to give it back.
I chalk the whole fiasco up to people thinking that a bank in RL and a "bank" in SL are the same thing. They are not. Caveat emptor is operational no matter which 'life' you are in.
But since Egypt is a one-party state, I guess they will go ahead and do anything they want, like any centralized dictatorship.
Progeria.
No particular comment here -- I just want people to note my long-time .sig. It does raise interesting questions on exactly how a deterministic Turing machine is able to give rise to unpredictable behavior.