Actually, spending a lot of money (in the right places, like creating jobs) when the economy is slow, is the way to get the economy booming again.
Thank you, Professor Keynes. But the trick is finding the right places -- something that governments are notoriously bad at. Often government money is poured into useless projects or into propping up inefficient industries, and once the government money is all pissed away, the same problems remain.
Once again, the free market is the worst possible solution, except for all the alternatives.
That's why the US government is now the oldest in existence
I don't mean to nitpick, but the last "regime change" in Britain occurred during the 1640-1660 civil wars. The British Parliament is one of the oldest institutions in Europe, dating from the 1200s. True, the nature of the government has changed over time, but fundamentally it is still a monarchy which governs through a parliament.
Yes, you Americans should adopt our Canadian system. Doing away with any semblance of a real opposition party was a great move. It really simplified the way in which we choose our government:
I elect: [ ] The Liberal guy, for ever and ever amen [ ] The Alliance, who want to send the Chinese back to Russia where they belong [ ] The Bloc, running for Canadian parliament on the platform of breaking up Canada [ ] The PC guy, even though the PCs haven't been a real party in years [ ] The NDP, bringing together union rednecks and the transgendered since 1935
Or do you think that, because what I've created isn't "physical", I'm not allowed to "own" it?
And what if it is physical? Remember, in the words of a great philosopher: "You can't, like, own a potato, man. Potatoes are mother nature's creatures."
More seriously now: in some sense, all property is a legal fiction. How does it make sense that drawing lines on a map allocates a region of the ground to be my property? How is it that I can accumulate goods, and others are prevented from taking or using them, even if they are left unprotected?
Of course, all property is legal fiction in the natural world -- but a useful one. Property permits us to engage in commerce with knowledge that there will be legal consequences for those who deprive us of our property. As such I don't buy the arguments of anti-copyright folks who claim that because intellectual property is legal fiction, it should not exist.
Suggestions for Moderators
on
SCOrched Earth
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
I've been a member for a long time, and the content seems to be degenerating into a groupthink zealot factory with its own set of dogmas and censors.
Memo to moderators: Please stop moderating the same tired, old SCO-bashing posts or conspiracy theories as insightful or interesting, because they are neither. (I agree with the parent.)
In particular, do not promote any post whose content is basically "Darl is going to jail", because these posts are wrong. No SCO executive will do jail time, because it is not illegal to be a jerk. If you need further evidence that nobody is going to jail, consider that David Boies is now up to his neck in SCO. He may tiptoe on the fine edge of what is legal, but he's a smart enough lawyer not to go over.
In particular, what if I copyright all facts concerning myself and refuse to grant any company a license? Surely no entity could have a better claim to their "authorship". Say hello to free unlisted telephone numbers.
Example: a pda sized device that uses some yet to be invented technology to scan your body and keep track of everything going on at an amazing level of detail
Yes, but the crucial question is -- how much would you be willing to pay for it? And unless you were willing to replace it every three years at the same price (or higher), the economics wouldn't make sense for the manufacturer.
The point I'm trying to make is that technology has far fewer restrictions than economics.
I remember sitting in a lecture in 1997, where some luminary from IBM predicted the death of Moore's Law in 10 years. Now it's 2003 and the death of Moore's Law is being predicted in 15 years.
Technologically, there will probably be enough clever ideas to take chip manufacturing beyond the point where it is no longer economical to make such fast processors. Consider that in 1980, a handful of engineers could sit down with pencil and paper and design a microprocessor. Today it takes teams of PhDs in physics, math, and engineering to do the same, in multi-billion-dollar facilities with the latest design tools and techniques. One day the buying public will realise that e-mail and word processing does not need a bazillion gigahertz, and gamers will have photorealistic animation with excellent AI. The chip maker will not make back the investment on a fab plant, and on that day Moore's Law will be dead, not for physical reasons but for economical ones.
Also, by Europeans I think he means "Brits". To my knowledge, only we pay a TV License.
I think there are also license fees in the Scandinavian countries. Certainly there are in Sweden and Finland. Remenber that Nokia television handset story a while back?
but don't things as small as paing flecks cause serious damage at the kind of speeds space junk goes at?
I assume you mean "paint flecks", and the answer is that they may cause minor damage. The space shuttle Challenger took a paint fleck hit on one of its windows, which left a crater about a quarter inch in diameter. Apparently such minor pitting on the thermal tiles is considered routine in the shuttle program.
Even at orbital speeds, paint flecks don't have enough momentum to worry about. The big worry is the ball-bearing-sized debris, which is essentially impossible to detect, and which could deliver the impact energy of a hand grenade explosion.
Most spacecraft that fly in and out of the Earth's atmosphere have thick skins, to endure the stresses of launch and re-entry. Spacecraft that are solely designed to travel in the vacuum of space tend to be quite thin-skinned to save weight.
For example, the Apollo lunar module had a skin about the thickness of a pop can. Apparently the hatch would bulge outward when the module was pressurized -- I wish I could find a reference for that. There is also a story of a technician on the ground who clicked his pen against a high-pressue LM fuel tank during testing -- the click opened a pin-prick leak that amputated the technician's finger (that story is in "Apollo" by Murray and Cox).
The ISS was specifically designed to withstand impacts from space debris, so I would expect its hull to be a little thicker.
David Boies (to Darl McBride): Hey, did you see the OSDL web page? They just wrote a paper saying we're full of shit.
Darl McBride: Stop Everything!! (sound of a needle being drawn across a record) We must have been wrong the whole time. Send IBM a dozen roses, and tell Linus to forget the whole thing.
David Boies: If it's on the internet, it must be true.
"Dude, ask your doctor if Viagra is right for you."
(much faster voice)"Possible side effects include extreme flatulence, delusions, uncontrollable swearing, and growth of a third arm. You should not take this medication while children are present. Tell your doctor if you experience dizziness, heartburn, or become president of the united states."
I've noticed that in every article having to do with outsourcing, there are more than a few posts calling for the government to do something about it (i.e., instigate tarrifs). Yet in every article having to do with file sharing, the overwhelming sentiment is: their business model is obsolete, we don't owe them a living, deal with it. Well guess what -- this is the world you've created! The high-paid tech worker business model is becoming obsolete. It's hypocricy that obsolescence should apply to everyone except yourself.
I grant you that not everyone who wants tarriffs also wants the RIAA to FOAD. However, I have yet to hear a single techie say, "Well, I guess I'm obsolete -- better go find a new, profitable skill set." It's all fun and games when the victims are anonymous, isn't it?
I couldn't possibly disagree more with your post. Firstly, the one thing that unites just about every civilization since Sumeria is a free market. The practice of barter is just about the most ancient one in human history.
Secondly, I would argue that the FCC contributes to a poor market in this case, by shutting out all but a few players. These companies have licenses which amount to an effective monopoly over a segment of bandwidth. They have little incentive to be good to their customers, since the range of competition is also limited and like-minded.
Ironically, the reason why the FCC exists is to allocate interference-free frequecy bands, but the most advanced communication methods in use (i.e., spread spectrum) are expressly designed to tolerate interference. Perhaps the FCC has outlived its usefulness.
What exactly is wrong with taking a piece of paper with every candidate's name on it, and making an "X" beside your choice? This is the way things are done in Canadian federal elections, no fancy-pants touch screens or butterfly ballots or any other nonsense. Everyone gets a ballot with a standard design, from Victoria to Halifax.
Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest. If technology doesn't simplify life, what use is it?
Slashdot Mirror
Actually, spending a lot of money (in the right places, like creating jobs) when the economy is slow, is the way to get the economy booming again.
Thank you, Professor Keynes. But the trick is finding the right places -- something that governments are notoriously bad at. Often government money is poured into useless projects or into propping up inefficient industries, and once the government money is all pissed away, the same problems remain.
Once again, the free market is the worst possible solution, except for all the alternatives.
That's why the US government is now the oldest in existence
I don't mean to nitpick, but the last "regime change" in Britain occurred during the 1640-1660 civil wars. The British Parliament is one of the oldest institutions in Europe, dating from the 1200s. True, the nature of the government has changed over time, but fundamentally it is still a monarchy which governs through a parliament.
Yes, you Americans should adopt our Canadian system. Doing away with any semblance of a real opposition party was a great move. It really simplified the way in which we choose our government:
I elect:
[ ] The Liberal guy, for ever and ever amen
[ ] The Alliance, who want to send the Chinese back to Russia where they belong
[ ] The Bloc, running for Canadian parliament on the platform of breaking up Canada
[ ] The PC guy, even though the PCs haven't been a real party in years
[ ] The NDP, bringing together union rednecks and the transgendered since 1935
Where is Edward James Olmos?
Forget that. Begin the thawing of Lorne Greene.
Or do you think that, because what I've created isn't "physical", I'm not allowed to "own" it?
And what if it is physical? Remember, in the words of a great philosopher: "You can't, like, own a potato, man. Potatoes are mother nature's creatures."
More seriously now: in some sense, all property is a legal fiction. How does it make sense that drawing lines on a map allocates a region of the ground to be my property? How is it that I can accumulate goods, and others are prevented from taking or using them, even if they are left unprotected?
Of course, all property is legal fiction in the natural world -- but a useful one. Property permits us to engage in commerce with knowledge that there will be legal consequences for those who deprive us of our property. As such I don't buy the arguments of anti-copyright folks who claim that because intellectual property is legal fiction, it should not exist.
does this mean we get better spam as well...?
Now, in addition to making your penis larger, it will make everyone else's smaller.
and then KICK THEM IN THE NUTS
Come on now, this isn't Australia.
I've been a member for a long time, and the content seems to be degenerating into a groupthink zealot factory with its own set of dogmas and censors.
Memo to moderators: Please stop moderating the same tired, old SCO-bashing posts or conspiracy theories as insightful or interesting, because they are neither. (I agree with the parent.)
In particular, do not promote any post whose content is basically "Darl is going to jail", because these posts are wrong. No SCO executive will do jail time, because it is not illegal to be a jerk. If you need further evidence that nobody is going to jail, consider that David Boies is now up to his neck in SCO. He may tiptoe on the fine edge of what is legal, but he's a smart enough lawyer not to go over.
But as long as all the Democrats have to offer is "Bush is a Nazi"
I invoke Godwin's Law. You have lost the thread. Thank you and have a nice day.
Size: Rack mount form factor
Weight: 60lbs
... or the Baltimore Book Thing, which is about as close as you can get to P2P without a computer.
http://www.kcna.co.jp
Pretty funny. A lot of stories like, "Ugandan ambassador hails Korean workers". Even some news in Spanish (I wonder if that's for Cuban benefit.)
In particular, what if I copyright all facts concerning myself and refuse to grant any company a license? Surely no entity could have a better claim to their "authorship". Say hello to free unlisted telephone numbers.
Example: a pda sized device that uses some yet to be invented technology to scan your body and keep track of everything going on at an amazing level of detail
Yes, but the crucial question is -- how much would you be willing to pay for it? And unless you were willing to replace it every three years at the same price (or higher), the economics wouldn't make sense for the manufacturer.
The point I'm trying to make is that technology has far fewer restrictions than economics.
I remember sitting in a lecture in 1997, where some luminary from IBM predicted the death of Moore's Law in 10 years. Now it's 2003 and the death of Moore's Law is being predicted in 15 years.
Technologically, there will probably be enough clever ideas to take chip manufacturing beyond the point where it is no longer economical to make such fast processors. Consider that in 1980, a handful of engineers could sit down with pencil and paper and design a microprocessor. Today it takes teams of PhDs in physics, math, and engineering to do the same, in multi-billion-dollar facilities with the latest design tools and techniques. One day the buying public will realise that e-mail and word processing does not need a bazillion gigahertz, and gamers will have photorealistic animation with excellent AI. The chip maker will not make back the investment on a fab plant, and on that day Moore's Law will be dead, not for physical reasons but for economical ones.
Also, by Europeans I think he means "Brits". To my knowledge, only we pay a TV License.
I think there are also license fees in the Scandinavian countries. Certainly there are in Sweden and Finland. Remenber that Nokia television handset story a while back?
but don't things as small as paing flecks cause serious damage at the kind of speeds space junk goes at?
I assume you mean "paint flecks", and the answer is that they may cause minor damage. The space shuttle Challenger took a paint fleck hit on one of its windows, which left a crater about a quarter inch in diameter. Apparently such minor pitting on the thermal tiles is considered routine in the shuttle program.
Even at orbital speeds, paint flecks don't have enough momentum to worry about. The big worry is the ball-bearing-sized debris, which is essentially impossible to detect, and which could deliver the impact energy of a hand grenade explosion.
Most spacecraft that fly in and out of the Earth's atmosphere have thick skins, to endure the stresses of launch and re-entry. Spacecraft that are solely designed to travel in the vacuum of space tend to be quite thin-skinned to save weight.
For example, the Apollo lunar module had a skin about the thickness of a pop can. Apparently the hatch would bulge outward when the module was pressurized -- I wish I could find a reference for that. There is also a story of a technician on the ground who clicked his pen against a high-pressue LM fuel tank during testing -- the click opened a pin-prick leak that amputated the technician's finger (that story is in "Apollo" by Murray and Cox).
The ISS was specifically designed to withstand impacts from space debris, so I would expect its hull to be a little thicker.
My vote is for Worker and Parasite.
Endut! Hoch hech!
David Boies (to Darl McBride): Hey, did you see the OSDL web page? They just wrote a paper saying we're full of shit.
Darl McBride: Stop Everything!! (sound of a needle being drawn across a record) We must have been wrong the whole time. Send IBM a dozen roses, and tell Linus to forget the whole thing.
David Boies: If it's on the internet, it must be true.
Give me UI that I can control by sucking on breasts, and then I'll be impressed.
I think most users will find that a little too complex, in the sense of Oedipus.
"Dude, ask your doctor if Viagra is right for you."
(much faster voice)"Possible side effects include extreme flatulence, delusions, uncontrollable swearing, and growth of a third arm. You should not take this medication while children are present. Tell your doctor if you experience dizziness, heartburn, or become president of the united states."
I've noticed that in every article having to do with outsourcing, there are more than a few posts calling for the government to do something about it (i.e., instigate tarrifs). Yet in every article having to do with file sharing, the overwhelming sentiment is: their business model is obsolete, we don't owe them a living, deal with it. Well guess what -- this is the world you've created! The high-paid tech worker business model is becoming obsolete. It's hypocricy that obsolescence should apply to everyone except yourself.
I grant you that not everyone who wants tarriffs also wants the RIAA to FOAD. However, I have yet to hear a single techie say, "Well, I guess I'm obsolete -- better go find a new, profitable skill set." It's all fun and games when the victims are anonymous, isn't it?
I couldn't possibly disagree more with your post. Firstly, the one thing that unites just about every civilization since Sumeria is a free market. The practice of barter is just about the most ancient one in human history.
Secondly, I would argue that the FCC contributes to a poor market in this case, by shutting out all but a few players. These companies have licenses which amount to an effective monopoly over a segment of bandwidth. They have little incentive to be good to their customers, since the range of competition is also limited and like-minded.
Ironically, the reason why the FCC exists is to allocate interference-free frequecy bands, but the most advanced communication methods in use (i.e., spread spectrum) are expressly designed to tolerate interference. Perhaps the FCC has outlived its usefulness.
What exactly is wrong with taking a piece of paper with every candidate's name on it, and making an "X" beside your choice? This is the way things are done in Canadian federal elections, no fancy-pants touch screens or butterfly ballots or any other nonsense. Everyone gets a ballot with a standard design, from Victoria to Halifax.
Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest. If technology doesn't simplify life, what use is it?