Dispatcher: "Unit 9, we've got a head-on collision on I-70. Multiple casualties. Can you respond?"
Unit 9: "Roger that, dispa...zzzzzfffzzzkkkkkrkrkk...so I'm all like WHATEVER! he wasn't even cute enoug... Dispatch? Did you copy?"
Dispatcher: "Unit 9, negative. There appears to be interfe... and then he CALLED me and asked me out aga OH hold on, got another call *click* Hello? Hey babe! Yes, I watched American Idol last night. Can you BELIVE that bitch won?!?"
Unit 9: "Dispatch come back. Got chatter on the frequency."
Dispatcher: "Roger that, Unit 9. Hold on a sec. (alters voice) This is Nextel customer service. Sorry to interrupt your call, but we are investigating cloned numbers and we think you may be a victim. Can you please verify your billing address for us?"
Female teen voice: "OMIGOD where did that come from hahahaha! OMIGOD OK it's 5233 South Downing Lane."
Dispatcher: "That will be fine, ma'am. We'll be with you shortly. Unit 9, standby. SWAT, we've got what looks like a drug deal gone bad at 5233 South Downing Lane. Advise that you have permission to use deadly force and should go in locked, cocked and ready to rock."
SWAT: "Roger that, dispatch." (sounds of guns loading)
Dispatcher: "Unit 9, we've got a head-on collision on I-70. Multiple casualties. Can you respond?"
For those who doubt the effects of global warming, I recommend taking up SCUBA. Not only is it a great sport, you'll get to see first-hand the effects of global warming, and it WILL scare you.
The Seychelles reefs are just about gone. What was once arguably the best reef to dive in the world outside the Great Barrier is now a graveyard.
And this knowledge isn't from reading an alarmist's evaluation of the situation, it is from seeing it with my own eyes on dives I did last year on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue. A conservative estimate would be that 90% of the reefs are dead. Probably closer to 95%, but as I didn't dive every square inch, I can't say there aren't some pristine patches somewhere. There very well may be, I just didn't see them.
As for the Florida and Great Barrier reefs, I can also attest to their ailing health. I live just above the Keys and dive them regularly, and I dove the GB Reef about 10 weeks ago. The destruction is real.
Don't take anyone's word for it. Go strap on a set of tanks and see it for yourself. It's a wake-up call.
"extrapolating to the general state of 4 billion people from one 14 year old?"
China has 4 billion people? Someone better find the guy at the WHO who pegged it at 1.2 billion and fire his ass...
And while the boy was a rather extreme example, there were several other less physical, but still quite aggressive incidents while trying to get taxis, etc.
Also, I'm rather large by American standards. By Chinese standards, I'm a freakin' giant. I imagine the aggression towards smaller people is more prevalent.
I've spent the last 4 months traveling throughout Asia and am currently in Shanghai, China.
China is the only place I've ever been, which inludes about 100 countries and 6 continents, where I've actually been physically assaulted by a street vagrant. The kid was about 14 and begging for money. He saw that I gave his much younger brother some Yuan coins and approached me.
He stuck his hand out, and I pointed to his little brother as if to say, "I already gave your little brother some money." He then starts punching me in the stomach. Not hard enough to hurt, but not soft enough to not be annoying, either. He kept this up for 3 minutes while I was waiting to cross the street, then he followed me across the street, punching me the entire time.
A fast, well-placed elbow to his temple made him stop, but the Chinese in general are quite aggressive.
Now, people who have never been to China and have no idea what it's really like but who don't like what I just said, this is when you mod me down. Wouldn't want you to miss an opportunity to flout your ignorant righteousness.
The Seychelles reefs are just about gone. What was once arguably the best reef to dive in the world outside the Great Barrier is now a graveyard.
And this knowledge isn't from reading an alarmist's evaluation of the situation, it is from seeing it with my own eyes on dives I did last year on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue. A conservative estimate would be that 90% of the reefs are dead. Probably closer to 95%, but as I didn't dive every square inch, I can't say there aren't some pristine patches somewhere. There very well may be, I just didn't see them.
As for the Florida and Great Barrier reefs, I can also attest to their ailing health. I live just above the Keys and dive them regularly, and I dove the GB Reef about 6 weeks ago. The destruction is real.
Don't take anyone's word for it. Go strap on a set of tanks and see it for yourself. It's a wake-up call.
"Its authors, both jointly and individually, have been instrumental in repairing a rift between the worlds of pure mathematics and theoretical particle physics, initiating a cross-fertilization which has been one of the most exciting developments of the last decades."
Tell me about it. I was just talking to my voluptuous Swedish masseuse girlfriend about the Atiyah-Singer index theorem and she was all like, "Oooohhhhhh take me NOW!" but in a Swedish accent and stuff.
One of the most exciting developments in the last decade, indeed.
I was holding flags while playing SubSpace and had been running for about 2 hours. My gf was watching TV in the living room, waiting for me to finish the game and got bored. So to try and convince me to hurry up, she crawled under my desk and started blowing me.
I kept playing as best I could under the circumstances, and lasted an easy 90 seconds before getting my ship annihilated. I was upset for a few seconds that she ruined my game, but then I came to my senses and bukkake'd her.
Think of it as a capital shift from the Bad Lawyers to the Good Lawyers, that in the process establishes a legal precedent for future GPL cases.
Not all lawyers are bad, ya know...
Tal
Re:Magnusson Moss Warranty Act
on
Hack Your Car
·
· Score: 2, Funny
"I have a Nissan Sentra SE-R SpecV...It was a bit over $21,000 fully loaded...If I spend $7,000 on performance parts the car will be able to drag against dodge vipers that cost around $60,000"
Yep. But when you cross the finish line, win or lose, you'll still be driving a Nissan Sentra.
Let alone the historical inaccuracies, the guy writes like he's in the 4th grade.
Here's my favorite typo, "As time went on, ATI and NVIDIA battled between themselves, releasing card after card. The cards released then were rather nuke warm."
Wasn't being sarcastic, but the comment wasn't directed solely at Apple. I understand the principle of maximizing profit on investment, but what I'm saying is that a business model with a 10% profit margin and the volume to generate $50MN in profit should not be considered a failure, especially when the resources needed to accomodate 100,000 users to 1,000,000 to 10,000,000 are a (small) fractional increase. Increasing bandwidth/servers is a relatively easy and low-cost expansion. Such a business can grow painlessly if the foundation is built correctly.
Downloadable music, in and of itself, is demonstrably profitable. That the records companies are digging in their heels against the technology has to do with greed, even if it is greed in the name of shareholders.
Perhaps piracy needs to become so widespread that the traditional distribution model becomes unprofitable, or simply less profitable than legal downloads, a la iTunes.
"At most, Jobs is left with a dime per track, so even $500 million in annual sales would add up to a paltry $50 million profit. Why even bother?"
Excuse me? A paltry $50 MILLION dollar profit?!?
'Paltry' and '$50 million dollar profit' don't belong in the same sentence.
This mentality is what's screwing the entire downloadable music process. It's not about whether it's profitable, it's about whether it's profitable enough.
Just for them saying that, I'm going to download some MP3s tonight. WTF...
"if china has the metals and the formula, why would their 'pirate' version be inferior to the american version, beyond its not being american?"
Where in the article did it indicate it would be inferior? They meant 'cheap' as in inexpensive, not low quality.
"wouldn't market demand dictate the quality of the chinese ternenol?"
Ummm... no? Market demand would determine the price. Product quality might sway consumer choice to the (presumably) more expensive American version (having to pay your non-Commie workers a living wage is a mother fucker on the bottom line) but since they STOLE (or are trying to steal) the process, the quality might be comparable.
"and surely pirated is the wrong word here. they are not bootlegging consumer goods, but manufacturing a material."
They are trying to mimic a patented process, and went so far as to hack into a company's network to steal the manufacturing details. If Americans had done the same to a start-up Chinese company, you and your ilk would be screaming about what greedy imperialists we are.
"Two years ago the firm's computer system was hacked into, most likely by spies for the People's Republic of China, which, according to the Pentagon, is actively trying to steal the formula for Terfenol. Terbium and dysprosium are most commonly found in the Boutou region of northern China."
What is confusing you? Just because they have the ingredients in their backyard doesn't mean they know wtf to do with them, nor does it mean they have eminent domain over any process that might incorporate those ingredients.
Talisman
Re:Well, since the conclusion of his last book
on
Human Accomplishment
·
· Score: 1
"I guess that's why 90+% of the NFL is White - because Asians and Blacks are every bit as athletic, right?"
I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you don't watch much football... Blacks represent approximately 60% of players in the NFL. Their population representation is about 14%.
If you are talking about coaches, here is an article that addresses the issue. If you don't feel like reading, it basically says the NFL is one coach short of a numerically accurate population representation. Personally, I despise ALL quotas and think they are complete bullshit, and dare I say it, UNAMERICAN. Whatever happened to the concept of the best person for the job?
As for cherry picking the data, geez dude. How much more evidence is required? The believers on BOTH sides won't budge no matter how much evidence is dumped in front of them. Boils down to feelings - people don't like them getting hurt. And the truth, sometimes, is rather painful.
Hopefully genetic engineering will eliminate these concerns and this argument will just be a historical curiosity in a couple/few generations.
South Florida was the other area of the world invaded by Bufo Marinaris. They will share in your joy.
Talisman
Re:Well, since the conclusion of his last book
on
Human Accomplishment
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
"...since the conclusion of his last book was that blacks are inherently stupid..."
That's not what he concluded, now was it. The conclusion of The Bell Curve was that you can find IQ trends amongst races, and if you recall correctly, Asians had the highest rate of geniuses. Murray is White, so where is his bias?
He stated you will find geniuses in ALL races, but you will find higher proportions in certain races.
Just because GWC was a genius does not mean every other Black person will be or can be.
I always find it astounding how people will readily admit that certain breeds of dogs have undeniable traits (Jack Russel Terriers are smart, Bloodhounds have highly sensitive noses, etc.) but then look at humans and refuse to admit any bio-level distinctions might be there. I guess that's why 75+% of the NBA is Black - because Asians and Whites are every bit as athletic, right?
If you ask the question, "Are there really differences between races?" and eliminate "Yes" as a possible answer, you aren't being intellectually honest.
I once worked with a man-hating lesbo (not a stereotype - she really was) who was the director of sales. That position, at that corporation, held as much power as the general manager.
She was a Cornell grad, and certainly nowhere near stupid, but her personality was best suited for a drill instructor, not a manager.
We had three different business areas under one very, very large roof so one day she calls me in and asks me to "consolidate all 3 databases."
One db was dBase, another was MS-SQL, and the third, so help me, was an ANCIENT db written for PICK!
She wanted this ASAP. So I explained to her that ASAP was 6 months, bare ass minimum. She (and her ilk) have NO IDEA the amount of work that goes into these projects.
She didn't like that answer, but told me to do it anyway. 2 months later I had a semi-functional interface written in Access. About that same time I reported the general manager to the owner for stealing company property. (He told me to authorize the purchase of a laptop for his girlfriend)
After that, things got very ugly, so I simply left before they had a chance to fire me. I was sleeping with a girl in HR at the time and she told me I beat them to the punch by about a week.
Not sure if this tale gives you any insight, I think I just wanted to get it off my chest:)
Anyway, the bright side is that a month later I found a job that paid 33% more, and which I absolutely *love* and it is what I'm still doing today.
In retrospect, I not only would have told her "no", I would have told her to jam it up her fat ass:)
"For the crowd making witty comments how "it didn't event get off the launch pad", go and rent The Right Stuff. It gives nice humour ladden but accurate picture of USA's original struggle to get anything off the pad (original footage included). After a while they decided to inform the press only after the launch attempts, less eyes and cameras witnessing the explosions was less embarrassing."
You neglect to mention that back then, it was brand new, never done before, technology . The U.S. and Russia did all the groundbreaking stuff 4 decades ago. All the new players have to do is copy a known good, and they even fuck THAT up!
"I will not let you say those things about my country..."
Well, I already did, and there is really fuckall you can do about it, or anything else negative (and true) about Brazil.
"I know the truth about Brazil yes, we have flaws, but we have strenghts too.."
As does every country on the planet. What's your point?
"...our space program is the most cost efective EVER.. we spent a fraction of what other countries have spent and accomplished great things"
Such as? Brazil abandoned its satellite program after two failures (read: explosions), and is now 'working with' (i.e. paying) France to develop the next generation. If Brazilians are so good at this rocketry stuff, why do they need French assistance? And the program is only cost effective IF YOUR ROCKETS STOP EXPLODING AND TAKING THE PAYLOAD WITH THEM. The reason Brazil is a good launch point is because it's near the sweet spot on the equator for geostationary orbit, NOT because Brazilians are involved.
"we don't have money to toss around like those world dominators up there... so we have to do it right, because we can't make mistakes"
You have to do it right, so that's why you keep doing it wrong?
"I WILL NOT LET YOU BLAME YOUR FLAWED PERCEPTION OF MY COUNTRY BE THE EXPLANATION OF THE CAUSES OF THIS ACCIDENT"
You seem to be seriously deluded as to what you can and cannot do to me.
"oh yes, I could say Columbia went bye-bye because US is a deorganized bunch of hamburgers eaters, and that they were lazy and overconfident, and forgot to check the thermal isolation on the wing..."
Brazil can't even get a basic rocket to fly right. You think they stand a chance at building a functional shuttle, capable of re-entry? Pffftttt... Typical Latin bravado. ALL bark, NO bite. Ooops! Yet another evil stereotype that happens to be as true as the day is long.
"...spanish and portuguese explorers came here, and took everything we had... wood, gold, minerals, everything... and a bunch of idiots from england dominated us for centuries robbing our money, and our economical and political independency."
If they were such idiots, how did they manage to dominate you? And Brazilians are mixed-blood. Those idiots you refer to are your blood relatives.
"so, if Brazil and other latin american ( and asian and african ) countries have economical and social dificulties there is only one we can blame : EUROPE."
Boy does that sound familiar. Don't want to take accountability for being fuck-ups, so you just point fingers in any direction other than your own.
Do you really think South America and Africa would be any further ahead now than they were then without European influence? Europe was already MILLENIA ahead of them in science and technology. Without those thieves, your people would still be dying from basic diseases.
"an example : in the 1800s, Paraguay was a GREAT , RICH country. so great and rich that it was threatening England ! so england financed a war and created reasons (remember the US report on Iraq weapons ? ) so Brazil could fight Paraguay. the war that destroied Paraguay and made Brazil forever knee deep in debts...
And Brazil was too stupid to see this coming? And is still too dense to figure a way out? And begging for money from the IMF doesn't count. You guys are a hair's breadth away from pulling an Argentina. That's strange behavior, from such a capable group of people...
Slashdot Mirror
Can you ever really get enough of Ellen?
Dispatcher: "Unit 9, we've got a head-on collision on I-70. Multiple casualties. Can you respond?"
Unit 9: "Roger that, dispa...zzzzzfffzzzkkkkkrkrkk...so I'm all like WHATEVER! he wasn't even cute enoug... Dispatch? Did you copy?"
Dispatcher: "Unit 9, negative. There appears to be interfe... and then he CALLED me and asked me out aga OH hold on, got another call *click* Hello? Hey babe! Yes, I watched American Idol last night. Can you BELIVE that bitch won?!?"
Unit 9: "Dispatch come back. Got chatter on the frequency."
Dispatcher: "Roger that, Unit 9. Hold on a sec. (alters voice) This is Nextel customer service. Sorry to interrupt your call, but we are investigating cloned numbers and we think you may be a victim. Can you please verify your billing address for us?"
Female teen voice: "OMIGOD where did that come from hahahaha! OMIGOD OK it's 5233 South Downing Lane."
Dispatcher: "That will be fine, ma'am. We'll be with you shortly. Unit 9, standby. SWAT, we've got what looks like a drug deal gone bad at 5233 South Downing Lane. Advise that you have permission to use deadly force and should go in locked, cocked and ready to rock."
SWAT: "Roger that, dispatch." (sounds of guns loading)
Dispatcher: "Unit 9, we've got a head-on collision on I-70. Multiple casualties. Can you respond?"
For those who doubt the effects of global warming, I recommend taking up SCUBA. Not only is it a great sport, you'll get to see first-hand the effects of global warming, and it WILL scare you.
The Seychelles reefs are just about gone. What was once arguably the best reef to dive in the world outside the Great Barrier is now a graveyard.
And this knowledge isn't from reading an alarmist's evaluation of the situation, it is from seeing it with my own eyes on dives I did last year on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue. A conservative estimate would be that 90% of the reefs are dead. Probably closer to 95%, but as I didn't dive every square inch, I can't say there aren't some pristine patches somewhere. There very well may be, I just didn't see them.
As for the Florida and Great Barrier reefs, I can also attest to their ailing health. I live just above the Keys and dive them regularly, and I dove the GB Reef about 10 weeks ago. The destruction is real.
Don't take anyone's word for it. Go strap on a set of tanks and see it for yourself. It's a wake-up call.
Tal
"extrapolating to the general state of 4 billion people from one 14 year old?"
China has 4 billion people? Someone better find the guy at the WHO who pegged it at 1.2 billion and fire his ass...
And while the boy was a rather extreme example, there were several other less physical, but still quite aggressive incidents while trying to get taxis, etc.
Also, I'm rather large by American standards. By Chinese standards, I'm a freakin' giant. I imagine the aggression towards smaller people is more prevalent.
Talisman
I've spent the last 4 months traveling throughout Asia and am currently in Shanghai, China.
China is the only place I've ever been, which inludes about 100 countries and 6 continents, where I've actually been physically assaulted by a street vagrant. The kid was about 14 and begging for money. He saw that I gave his much younger brother some Yuan coins and approached me.
He stuck his hand out, and I pointed to his little brother as if to say, "I already gave your little brother some money." He then starts punching me in the stomach. Not hard enough to hurt, but not soft enough to not be annoying, either. He kept this up for 3 minutes while I was waiting to cross the street, then he followed me across the street, punching me the entire time.
A fast, well-placed elbow to his temple made him stop, but the Chinese in general are quite aggressive.
Now, people who have never been to China and have no idea what it's really like but who don't like what I just said, this is when you mod me down. Wouldn't want you to miss an opportunity to flout your ignorant righteousness.
Well, at least one noteworthy one:
The Seychelles reefs are just about gone. What was once arguably the best reef to dive in the world outside the Great Barrier is now a graveyard.
And this knowledge isn't from reading an alarmist's evaluation of the situation, it is from seeing it with my own eyes on dives I did last year on Mahe, Praslin and La Digue. A conservative estimate would be that 90% of the reefs are dead. Probably closer to 95%, but as I didn't dive every square inch, I can't say there aren't some pristine patches somewhere. There very well may be, I just didn't see them.
As for the Florida and Great Barrier reefs, I can also attest to their ailing health. I live just above the Keys and dive them regularly, and I dove the GB Reef about 6 weeks ago. The destruction is real.
Don't take anyone's word for it. Go strap on a set of tanks and see it for yourself. It's a wake-up call.
Tal
"Its authors, both jointly and individually, have been instrumental in repairing a rift between the worlds of pure mathematics and theoretical particle physics, initiating a cross-fertilization which has been one of the most exciting developments of the last decades."
Tell me about it. I was just talking to my voluptuous Swedish masseuse girlfriend about the Atiyah-Singer index theorem and she was all like, "Oooohhhhhh take me NOW!" but in a Swedish accent and stuff.
One of the most exciting developments in the last decade, indeed.
Talisman
I was holding flags while playing SubSpace and had been running for about 2 hours. My gf was watching TV in the living room, waiting for me to finish the game and got bored. So to try and convince me to hurry up, she crawled under my desk and started blowing me.
:)
I kept playing as best I could under the circumstances, and lasted an easy 90 seconds before getting my ship annihilated. I was upset for a few seconds that she ruined my game, but then I came to my senses and bukkake'd her.
Then started playing again
Talisman
"...400+ lbs of torque, that's a lot...drive up to a dodge viper...and drag race them (and win :-D.)"
Yeah, it would, but you wouldn't win.
Gen II Vipers have over 450 ft/lbs of torque and Gen III Vipers, the current model, has over 500.
A Viper with a competent driver would eat your electric car alive, then throw up on it, then crap it back out.
Tal
This is way OT, but still hilarious enough to read again:
& ci d=4731395
http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=45779
Think of it as a capital shift from the Bad Lawyers to the Good Lawyers, that in the process establishes a legal precedent for future GPL cases.
Not all lawyers are bad, ya know...
Tal
"I have a Nissan Sentra SE-R SpecV...It was a bit over $21,000 fully loaded...If I spend $7,000 on performance parts the car will be able to drag against dodge vipers that cost around $60,000"
Yep. But when you cross the finish line, win or lose, you'll still be driving a Nissan Sentra.
Tal
This is like a steel cage match between bin Laden and Hitler. Who the hell do I root for?
Is there a scenario where both can lose?
Here's to hoping that the courthouse explodes.
Tal
"...german ISP T-Online wants to buy AOL..."
I want to buy AOL, too. I just don't have the money for it...
Talisman
That was a horrid timeline.
Let alone the historical inaccuracies, the guy writes like he's in the 4th grade.
Here's my favorite typo, "As time went on, ATI and NVIDIA battled between themselves, releasing card after card. The cards released then were rather nuke warm."
Yeah. We wish.
Tal
Wasn't being sarcastic, but the comment wasn't directed solely at Apple. I understand the principle of maximizing profit on investment, but what I'm saying is that a business model with a 10% profit margin and the volume to generate $50MN in profit should not be considered a failure, especially when the resources needed to accomodate 100,000 users to 1,000,000 to 10,000,000 are a (small) fractional increase. Increasing bandwidth/servers is a relatively easy and low-cost expansion. Such a business can grow painlessly if the foundation is built correctly.
Downloadable music, in and of itself, is demonstrably profitable. That the records companies are digging in their heels against the technology has to do with greed, even if it is greed in the name of shareholders.
Perhaps piracy needs to become so widespread that the traditional distribution model becomes unprofitable, or simply less profitable than legal downloads, a la iTunes.
Tal
From the article:
"At most, Jobs is left with a dime per track, so even $500 million in annual sales would add up to a paltry $50 million profit. Why even bother?"
Excuse me? A paltry $50 MILLION dollar profit?!?
'Paltry' and '$50 million dollar profit' don't belong in the same sentence.
This mentality is what's screwing the entire downloadable music process. It's not about whether it's profitable, it's about whether it's profitable enough.
Just for them saying that, I'm going to download some MP3s tonight. WTF...
Tal
"if china has the metals and the formula, why would their 'pirate' version be inferior to the american version, beyond its not being american?"
Where in the article did it indicate it would be inferior? They meant 'cheap' as in inexpensive, not low quality.
"wouldn't market demand dictate the quality of the chinese ternenol?"
Ummm... no? Market demand would determine the price. Product quality might sway consumer choice to the (presumably) more expensive American version (having to pay your non-Commie workers a living wage is a mother fucker on the bottom line) but since they STOLE (or are trying to steal) the process, the quality might be comparable.
"and surely pirated is the wrong word here. they are not bootlegging consumer goods, but manufacturing a material."
They are trying to mimic a patented process, and went so far as to hack into a company's network to steal the manufacturing details. If Americans had done the same to a start-up Chinese company, you and your ilk would be screaming about what greedy imperialists we are.
"Two years ago the firm's computer system was hacked into, most likely by spies for the People's Republic of China, which, according to the Pentagon, is actively trying to steal the formula for Terfenol. Terbium and dysprosium are most commonly found in the Boutou region of northern China."
What is confusing you? Just because they have the ingredients in their backyard doesn't mean they know wtf to do with them, nor does it mean they have eminent domain over any process that might incorporate those ingredients.
Talisman
"I guess that's why 90+% of the NFL is White - because Asians and Blacks are every bit as athletic, right?"
I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you don't watch much football... Blacks represent approximately 60% of players in the NFL. Their population representation is about 14%.
If you are talking about coaches, here is an article that addresses the issue. If you don't feel like reading, it basically says the NFL is one coach short of a numerically accurate population representation. Personally, I despise ALL quotas and think they are complete bullshit, and dare I say it, UNAMERICAN. Whatever happened to the concept of the best person for the job?
As for cherry picking the data, geez dude. How much more evidence is required? The believers on BOTH sides won't budge no matter how much evidence is dumped in front of them. Boils down to feelings - people don't like them getting hurt. And the truth, sometimes, is rather painful.
Hopefully genetic engineering will eliminate these concerns and this argument will just be a historical curiosity in a couple/few generations.
Talisman
It's on the way, mate:
0 ,5 942,7319431,00.html
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/printpage/
South Florida was the other area of the world invaded by Bufo Marinaris. They will share in your joy.
Talisman
"...since the conclusion of his last book was that blacks are inherently stupid..."
That's not what he concluded, now was it. The conclusion of The Bell Curve was that you can find IQ trends amongst races, and if you recall correctly, Asians had the highest rate of geniuses. Murray is White, so where is his bias?
He stated you will find geniuses in ALL races, but you will find higher proportions in certain races.
Just because GWC was a genius does not mean every other Black person will be or can be.
I always find it astounding how people will readily admit that certain breeds of dogs have undeniable traits (Jack Russel Terriers are smart, Bloodhounds have highly sensitive noses, etc.) but then look at humans and refuse to admit any bio-level distinctions might be there. I guess that's why 75+% of the NBA is Black - because Asians and Whites are every bit as athletic, right?
If you ask the question, "Are there really differences between races?" and eliminate "Yes" as a possible answer, you aren't being intellectually honest.
Talisman
"...makes you wonder why they call it the "Big Bang"..."
Creation of the universe, my man. It's when God got his shwerve on.
I once worked with a man-hating lesbo (not a stereotype - she really was) who was the director of sales. That position, at that corporation, held as much power as the general manager.
:)
:)
She was a Cornell grad, and certainly nowhere near stupid, but her personality was best suited for a drill instructor, not a manager.
We had three different business areas under one very, very large roof so one day she calls me in and asks me to "consolidate all 3 databases."
One db was dBase, another was MS-SQL, and the third, so help me, was an ANCIENT db written for PICK!
She wanted this ASAP. So I explained to her that ASAP was 6 months, bare ass minimum. She (and her ilk) have NO IDEA the amount of work that goes into these projects.
She didn't like that answer, but told me to do it anyway. 2 months later I had a semi-functional interface written in Access. About that same time I reported the general manager to the owner for stealing company property. (He told me to authorize the purchase of a laptop for his girlfriend)
After that, things got very ugly, so I simply left before they had a chance to fire me. I was sleeping with a girl in HR at the time and she told me I beat them to the punch by about a week.
Not sure if this tale gives you any insight, I think I just wanted to get it off my chest
Anyway, the bright side is that a month later I found a job that paid 33% more, and which I absolutely *love* and it is what I'm still doing today.
In retrospect, I not only would have told her "no", I would have told her to jam it up her fat ass
Tal
"For the crowd making witty comments how "it didn't event get off the launch pad", go and rent The Right Stuff. It gives nice humour ladden but accurate picture of USA's original struggle to get anything off the pad (original footage included). After a while they decided to inform the press only after the launch attempts, less eyes and cameras witnessing the explosions was less embarrassing."
You neglect to mention that back then, it was brand new, never done before, technology . The U.S. and Russia did all the groundbreaking stuff 4 decades ago. All the new players have to do is copy a known good, and they even fuck THAT up!
Tal
"I will not let you say those things about my country..."
...
Well, I already did, and there is really fuckall you can do about it, or anything else negative (and true) about Brazil.
"I know the truth about Brazil
yes, we have flaws, but we have strenghts too.."
As does every country on the planet. What's your point?
"...our space program is the most cost efective EVER.. we spent a fraction of what other countries have spent and accomplished great things"
Such as? Brazil abandoned its satellite program after two failures (read: explosions), and is now 'working with' (i.e. paying) France to develop the next generation. If Brazilians are so good at this rocketry stuff, why do they need French assistance? And the program is only cost effective IF YOUR ROCKETS STOP EXPLODING AND TAKING THE PAYLOAD WITH THEM. The reason Brazil is a good launch point is because it's near the sweet spot on the equator for geostationary orbit, NOT because Brazilians are involved.
"we don't have money to toss around like those world dominators up there... so we have to do it right, because we can't make mistakes"
You have to do it right, so that's why you keep doing it wrong?
"I WILL NOT LET YOU BLAME YOUR FLAWED PERCEPTION OF MY COUNTRY BE THE EXPLANATION OF THE CAUSES OF THIS ACCIDENT"
You seem to be seriously deluded as to what you can and cannot do to me.
"oh yes, I could say Columbia went bye-bye because US is a deorganized bunch of hamburgers eaters, and that they were lazy and overconfident, and forgot to check the thermal isolation on the wing..."
Brazil can't even get a basic rocket to fly right. You think they stand a chance at building a functional shuttle, capable of re-entry? Pffftttt... Typical Latin bravado. ALL bark, NO bite. Ooops! Yet another evil stereotype that happens to be as true as the day is long.
"...spanish and portuguese explorers came here, and took everything we had... wood, gold, minerals, everything... and a bunch of idiots from england dominated us for centuries robbing our money, and our economical and political independency."
If they were such idiots, how did they manage to dominate you? And Brazilians are mixed-blood. Those idiots you refer to are your blood relatives.
"so, if Brazil and other latin american ( and asian and african ) countries have economical and social dificulties there is only one we can blame : EUROPE."
Boy does that sound familiar. Don't want to take accountability for being fuck-ups, so you just point fingers in any direction other than your own.
Do you really think South America and Africa would be any further ahead now than they were then without European influence? Europe was already MILLENIA ahead of them in science and technology. Without those thieves, your people would still be dying from basic diseases.
"an example : in the 1800s, Paraguay was a GREAT , RICH country. so great and rich that it was threatening England ! so england financed a war and created reasons (remember the US report on Iraq weapons ? ) so Brazil could fight Paraguay. the war that destroied Paraguay and made Brazil forever knee deep in debts
And Brazil was too stupid to see this coming? And is still too dense to figure a way out? And begging for money from the IMF doesn't count. You guys are a hair's breadth away from pulling an Argentina. That's strange behavior, from such a capable group of people...
Tal