1. We're not bloodthirsty war pigs. Thats a mischaracterization by pacifist leftists unwilling to ever REALLY fight for what they believe in.
2. Yes the EU needs to become a military force. Only a fool blinded by idealism would think that one can have credible and effective global influence without the military might to protect AND project their interests.
Your one of those folks who thinks the amount of money in a system is a limited amount, sort of like a pie which never shrinks or grows larger.
If there was world peace, there wouldn't be any leftover defence funds to spend because they wouldn't have been collected in the first place. All of the inventions we've gotten from the act of War would have ceased to exist as well.
I know Peace sounds cool and all, but a lot of research, good research, has been done by two different groups of people trying to figure out how to blow the other up in the biggest most spectacular ways.
For a European, European Hegemony is the best thing for that particular person. Likewise for a Chinese citizen, Chinese Hegemony....etc so on and so forth.
Now those interests would be the Wolfowitz doctrine of making sure no other nation can achieve military parity with the US. There's also economic interests, making sure we are the worlds economic power and lastly our culture, one of Democracy and Freedom continues to spread.
Please note that the pressence of disagreements between the US and Europe does not invalidate the US's interests of promoting Democracy and Freedom. As long as another nation's/region's Democracy and Freedom does not threaten a US vital interest, then its all good!
Are you at all aware that despite a few Iraqi civilians dying in the war, many millions now are free and no longer have to worry about being oppressed by Saddam Hussein? That they can now erect their own democratic governement? But does none of that matter because a few had to die in the process of their liberation?
France: Declining birth rate Germany: Declining birth rate Russia: Actual year to year loss of already born citizens Italy: Highest rate of contraceptive usage in the Western World thus a Declining birth rate
I could go on and on but those are the largest EU or potential EU nations. That the US will surprass the EU, no matter how big it eventually gets land wise, in population isn't such a far off thought. The US might even rival China in a century.
The EU isn't the US-lite? Could have fooled me. Lets see, with the current mess the EU is right now I would compare it wo the early US Continental Congress. Soon the "nations" of the EU will realize they are really just the United States of Europe (note: That very name was recently banned from consideration yet the EU did agree on a permanent office of an EU President. Sound familiar?)
It might be insulting but its also true. A recent report by a French think tank has stated that even with the extra 15 Eastern European nations, the EU as a whole will decline economically compared to the US mainly due to the fact that the EU's population is declining and its more restrictive labor laws.
The reason why Europe has lower rates of people living in poverty is because Europe spends more on social services. Everyone knows this. More for homeless people, more for jobless people, you name it Europe will spend money on it.
And yes it is very very nice for the governments to do this. Its also economic folly. Its EXPENSIVE to do that. It hurts your economies and takes capital away from creators and gives it away to people who do not contribute in meaningful ways to society.
I agree that one should not think that all they have to do with their life is "work hard". Vacation and sabbaticals are important. But you have to EARN them. Simply existing doesn't give you the right to them. Furthermore US workers aren't worked to the breaking point. Most work in the range of 40 to 50 hours per week, not 70 hours per week. The point I was trying to make was that by setting its maximum work hours so low France had hobbled itself unnecessarily in a world full of competititors who would do no such foolish thing.
And who are you to tell someone that is working 70 hours a week that its too much for them? Only the individual could know that. What if someone WANTS to work 70,80 heck 90 hours a week? Ambition is strong in the US. I don't know about Europe. Its not like everyone who works 70+ hours a week is forced to do so for their entire life. It could be for a very short period of time, say 5 years or less. But in order to do something similar in Europe you'd basically have to start your own business or find some line of work that is for whatever reason exempt from the rediculous labor rules/laws there.
And yes being able to fire at will DOES benefit society. It improves the economy thus bringing down the cost of goods for everyone. That means everyone has to work less and earn less to buy the same things. I don't see how that could be a bad thing. And social service spending is not the answer. At some point the government will run out of money because there won't be enough people working to tax or they'll already be taxed too much as it is.
With declining birth rates how will Europe be able to continue to pay pensions and social security and fund healthcare for its citizens when there's less people paying tax money in then there are taking it out?
Perhaps if they weren't raised in a culture of "the state will care for you" they would have made earlier arraingements to care more successfully for themselves.
You are forgetting about competition. When companies compete they fight for the same customer base. Only one company can get them. The one that loses, doesn't get the money they need to stay at their current staffing levels. If they're already as efficient as they can possibly be then they have to downsize.
What happens when there's a disruptive technology that comes along and forces the company, as well as most of the industry out of business? Who do you blame then? Its simply not possible or even desireable for a company to remain the same or in existence forever.
The railroad industry was virtually decimated by the combination of cars and planes. Does this mean the railroad execs didn't manage the industry well?
The "kid" pretty much hit the nail on the head. It doesn't matter how a precious Socialist society is designed. Without sufficient motivation to succeed and innovate less development and invention will occur.
Why work at something when the government will support you for your entire life?
Europe has an attitude similar to yours. Its the reason why their economies aren't as flexible as ours is and why their rates of unemployment are higher.
So you are actually causing harm instead of helping people. I hope you can feel good about yourself!
PS. To all those who say that the US does not count all of the people out of work, I agree. However with Europe's very restrictive labor laws much more Europeans are "underemployed" than Americans are. An example would be France's 35 hour work week. Whereas in the US you could have one person working 70 hours a week you'd cut those hours in half and hire 2 people in France. So in effect even though both those people in France have jobs it is the equivalent to one of them being out of work.
My completely uneducated and unresearched estimates are that France's rate of unemployment is 10% to 15% higher than the official stated level of 10%.
I'm being serious when I ask this question, why the hell are you still with this woman? Life is short and you can only live once. Think hard before you answer.
Wouldn't that pretty much describe Windows XP running on cheap PC hardware to a T? Luna compared to Aqua...well there's very little difference to me.
Keep in mind that I'm no Windows Fanboy. I've been a Mac user since I was in the first grade (which would have been 1985) but I have to be honest, using Windows XP Pro is as easy as using Mac OS X. Until someone makes advances in AI technology I don't think either OS will gain that much of a foothold over the other.
You were right about everything else except the OS not being stable. Mac OS X is VERY stable. Its built on Unix for crying out loud. It gets better uptimes than Windows XP thats for sure.
So make sure you update your Mac knowledge concerning OS X.
There is no way anyone could design a mass transit system that could take everyone to every place in the city that they would want to go without adding in a lot of walking time. And thats the point, folks don't want to have to walk. Not to mention waiting for the bus/train to arrive in the first place.....
Walking takes TIME. You can drive to a place faster than you can walk there. And for the love of GAWD not every place (or even most) places people want to go are within walking distance.
Hey man. Why don't you make it easier on yourself and just get an account at LiveJournal.com? Then you can use cool apps like PocketLJ to make entries from your PDA (Palm or PocketPC) if you have a PDA that is....
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1. We're not bloodthirsty war pigs. Thats a mischaracterization by pacifist leftists unwilling to ever REALLY fight for what they believe in.
2. Yes the EU needs to become a military force. Only a fool blinded by idealism would think that one can have credible and effective global influence without the military might to protect AND project their interests.
Your one of those folks who thinks the amount of money in a system is a limited amount, sort of like a pie which never shrinks or grows larger.
If there was world peace, there wouldn't be any leftover defence funds to spend because they wouldn't have been collected in the first place. All of the inventions we've gotten from the act of War would have ceased to exist as well.
I know Peace sounds cool and all, but a lot of research, good research, has been done by two different groups of people trying to figure out how to blow the other up in the biggest most spectacular ways.
Its simple.
For a European, European Hegemony is the best thing for that particular person. Likewise for a Chinese citizen, Chinese Hegemony....etc so on and so forth.
Now those interests would be the Wolfowitz doctrine of making sure no other nation can achieve military parity with the US. There's also economic interests, making sure we are the worlds economic power and lastly our culture, one of Democracy and Freedom continues to spread.
Please note that the pressence of disagreements between the US and Europe does not invalidate the US's interests of promoting Democracy and Freedom. As long as another nation's/region's Democracy and Freedom does not threaten a US vital interest, then its all good!
(^_^)
Are you at all aware that despite a few Iraqi civilians dying in the war, many millions now are free and no longer have to worry about being oppressed by Saddam Hussein? That they can now erect their own democratic governement? But does none of that matter because a few had to die in the process of their liberation?
Tell that to Chirac and Shroder who were so bullish on creating an EU centric alternative to NATO.
US hegemony is the best way for the US to protect its interests, cultural, economic and strategic. To suggest otherwise is idealistic leftist folly.
France: Declining birth rate
Germany: Declining birth rate
Russia: Actual year to year loss of already born citizens
Italy: Highest rate of contraceptive usage in the Western World thus a Declining birth rate
I could go on and on but those are the largest EU or potential EU nations. That the US will surprass the EU, no matter how big it eventually gets land wise, in population isn't such a far off thought. The US might even rival China in a century.
The EU isn't the US-lite? Could have fooled me. Lets see, with the current mess the EU is right now I would compare it wo the early US Continental Congress. Soon the "nations" of the EU will realize they are really just the United States of Europe (note: That very name was recently banned from consideration yet the EU did agree on a permanent office of an EU President. Sound familiar?)
It might be insulting but its also true. A recent report by a French think tank has stated that even with the extra 15 Eastern European nations, the EU as a whole will decline economically compared to the US mainly due to the fact that the EU's population is declining and its more restrictive labor laws.
Its very hard to go to war with a group of people who simply won't fight back. Remember Europe's first and last strategy is always APPEASEMENT.
You could have throttled it you know. Turn it down to a trickle during the day and maybe a bit wider at night.
At the same time you'd be practising and flexing your QoS skills.
The reason why Europe has lower rates of people living in poverty is because Europe spends more on social services. Everyone knows this. More for homeless people, more for jobless people, you name it Europe will spend money on it.
And yes it is very very nice for the governments to do this.
Its also economic folly. Its EXPENSIVE to do that. It hurts your economies and takes capital away from creators and gives it away to people who do not contribute in meaningful ways to society.
I agree that one should not think that all they have to do with their life is "work hard". Vacation and sabbaticals are important. But you have to EARN them. Simply existing doesn't give you the right to them. Furthermore US workers aren't worked to the breaking point. Most work in the range of 40 to 50 hours per week, not 70 hours per week. The point I was trying to make was that by setting its maximum work hours so low France had hobbled itself unnecessarily in a world full of competititors who would do no such foolish thing.
And who are you to tell someone that is working 70 hours a week that its too much for them? Only the individual could know that. What if someone WANTS to work 70,80 heck 90 hours a week? Ambition is strong in the US. I don't know about Europe. Its not like everyone who works 70+ hours a week is forced to do so for their entire life. It could be for a very short period of time, say 5 years or less. But in order to do something similar in Europe you'd basically have to start your own business or find some line of work that is for whatever reason exempt from the rediculous labor rules/laws there.
And yes being able to fire at will DOES benefit society. It improves the economy thus bringing down the cost of goods for everyone. That means everyone has to work less and earn less to buy the same things. I don't see how that could be a bad thing. And social service spending is not the answer. At some point the government will run out of money because there won't be enough people working to tax or they'll already be taxed too much as it is.
With declining birth rates how will Europe be able to continue to pay pensions and social security and fund healthcare for its citizens when there's less people paying tax money in then there are taking it out?
Perhaps if they weren't raised in a culture of "the state will care for you" they would have made earlier arraingements to care more successfully for themselves.
You are forgetting about competition. When companies compete they fight for the same customer base. Only one company can get them. The one that loses, doesn't get the money they need to stay at their current staffing levels. If they're already as efficient as they can possibly be then they have to downsize.
What happens when there's a disruptive technology that comes along and forces the company, as well as most of the industry out of business? Who do you blame then? Its simply not possible or even desireable for a company to remain the same or in existence forever.
The railroad industry was virtually decimated by the combination of cars and planes. Does this mean the railroad execs didn't manage the industry well?
The "kid" pretty much hit the nail on the head. It doesn't matter how a precious Socialist society is designed. Without sufficient motivation to succeed and innovate less development and invention will occur.
Why work at something when the government will support you for your entire life?
Europe has an attitude similar to yours. Its the reason why their economies aren't as flexible as ours is and why their rates of unemployment are higher.
So you are actually causing harm instead of helping people. I hope you can feel good about yourself!
PS. To all those who say that the US does not count all of the people out of work, I agree. However with Europe's very restrictive labor laws much more Europeans are "underemployed" than Americans are. An example would be France's 35 hour work week. Whereas in the US you could have one person working 70 hours a week you'd cut those hours in half and hire 2 people in France. So in effect even though both those people in France have jobs it is the equivalent to one of them being out of work.
My completely uneducated and unresearched estimates are that France's rate of unemployment is 10% to 15% higher than the official stated level of 10%.
I'm being serious when I ask this question, why the hell are you still with this woman? Life is short and you can only live once. Think hard before you answer.
Should any of us care about a filthy law breaker such as yourself in the first place?
Wouldn't that pretty much describe Windows XP running on cheap PC hardware to a T? Luna compared to Aqua...well there's very little difference to me.
Keep in mind that I'm no Windows Fanboy. I've been a Mac user since I was in the first grade (which would have been 1985) but I have to be honest, using Windows XP Pro is as easy as using Mac OS X. Until someone makes advances in AI technology I don't think either OS will gain that much of a foothold over the other.
You were right about everything else except the OS not being stable. Mac OS X is VERY stable. Its built on Unix for crying out loud. It gets better uptimes than Windows XP thats for sure.
So make sure you update your Mac knowledge concerning OS X.
I think you misunderstand the situation. It makes no difference if Apple makes the Mac or not. If its a 600Mhz G3 running OS X, then it WILL be slow.
Do we not remember how slow OS X ran on the current Macs of the time when it was introduced?
...point?
I mean really. Open sourcers, whats the point?
Want to run OS X? Buy a Mac!
There is no way anyone could design a mass transit system that could take everyone to every place in the city that they would want to go without adding in a lot of walking time. And thats the point, folks don't want to have to walk. Not to mention waiting for the bus/train to arrive in the first place.....
Walking takes TIME. You can drive to a place faster than you can walk there. And for the love of GAWD not every place (or even most) places people want to go are within walking distance.
What if the place you wish to eat at isn't anywhere near your job?
Hey man. Why don't you make it easier on yourself and just get an account at LiveJournal.com? Then you can use cool apps like PocketLJ to make entries from your PDA (Palm or PocketPC) if you have a PDA that is....