Canada did not have universal health care in the 1940's and most people thought Tommy Douglas was crazy to try to get it implemented, but now we take it for granted. Sometimes we DO get a rainbow.
So what are the chances of getting copyright reformed? For people under 40 what percentage copy music, art, text, and other things at will and see nothing wrong with it? A pretty big percentage. These people are the up and coming voters and politicians and they could very well reign in the crazy copyright laws that exist now. Plus, if the record companies keep trying to retain their old business model by suing their customers they will go out of business, and no longer have lobbying money.
"Mother Nature", AKA the natural laws of the universe, doesn't care about us one way or the other. Mother Nature isn't even aware we exists as Mother Nature is NOT aware of anything. Attributing awareness to 'mother nature' is irrational.
Well, he may have stated his position strongly, but you can actually hold that position and still treat employees fairly, and foster loyalty among your employees.
Employees ARE hired to be paid wages/salary. Sometimes there are bonuses and commissions, but mainly you get paid for your time. Yes, the work you day on a particular day may make the company millions, but if things went bad that day the company may have lost millions. You get paid either way. The company takes the risks, and you get a nice safe wage, that is the deal. A good company will treat employees fairly within this framework, fair wages and benefits, training, a career path, no one is fired for non-job related things, fair compensation for over-time, flexible hours, sincere concern for balancing family and work.
A poor company will keep wages as low as possible, have high turn over to keep new low paid people working, never give training, always deny time off to attend funerals, fire people at random (just to keep them on their toes), never have enough staff to do a good job, etc...
It is perfectly fair for the company to reap the benefits of the risks it takes.
As is often the case, a post that only deals with the USA is stated as if it is a universal truth.
Free speech issues aside, the USA is just about the only western country with 'employed at will' default labor rules that allow employers to fire employees without cause. Where I live I would have to make outrageous lies about my company for management to have any chance of firing me for things I say on the internet.
Back to free speech. Free speech laws that don't protect you from your employer are NOT very free. You USA'ian's should do something about that.
Depends on where you live. Not every country has the same copyright and fair use rules as the USA. Some countries are more restrictive, and some are less restrictive. I can legally copy a Cd I purchased as much as a want and even distribute copies to my friends. I can't upload it to the internet.
and always pay off the WHOLE bill each month. Unless you have a horrible credit rating you can always get cheaper money than a credit card. But really, if you can't pay it off at the end of the month you really shouldn't buy it. Except for your mortgage, and maybe a car loan, you should avoid debt. Saving isn't that hard.
That sucks of course, but without arrest records being public the government can arrest anyone, anytime, and hold them for as long as they like without trial. Governments all over the world still do this. The problems with governments abusing their powers are so much greater than the problems of occasional mob justice that justice demands arrest records be public.
I do agree with you that a witness should get better protection. Witnesses are not being arrested and are not accused of any crimes.
As others have pointed out, this is a very bad idea. If officials do not have to publish arrest records then they can arrest anyone for any reason and hold them as long as they like. The reason all arrests are public is to protect citizens from government abuse. This is exactly why the secret star chambers being used to hold terrorists are such a bad idea - if the citizens let the government gt away with this for "terrorists" they will soon being trying to do it for dangerous criminals then regular criminals then you.
I this case I don't see the problem with outing an ADULT who has indirectly caused the death of a child. This person may not have committed a crime, but the public shaming should give others something to think about before they do something so stupid.
I disagree. I think you are confusing entitlements and rights. Rights are things other people can't stop you from doing. Entitlements are things other people give you. I'm all for everyone enjoying strong rights, like freedom of expression, freedom of movement, freedom to organise, etc... I'm against entitlements except for medical care and education. If you think anyone who works deserves more then you are free to give YOUR money to anyone you think needs help.
If you are stacking boxes you deserve a low wage. Stacking boxes should not be any ones career who expects to raise a family, it's a job for students. Running a cash register takes more skill and should pay more, but no one has the right to expect ANY old job to pay enough to support a particular life style.
What people expect has gone way up over the last 50 years. When I was very, very young the 'apartment' my dad rented for his family was an unheated attic (some heat drifted up from downstairs). It was CHEAP, and you could not rent it out today due to regulations. No one thought it odd that a poor family had no car or even a radio, and getting new shoes was a big deal. You could get by on a very low wage. I think it is harder to live on the cheap today due to high taxes, regulations, and much higher expectation as to what a minimal standard of living is. (Dad did work his way up the ladder of success and we were in the attic for only a year.)
If you want a higher wage, learn a skill that pays more. This is where a government provided entitlement to education can help. So why is it better to give out free education instead of just increasing the minimum wage? Increasing the minimum wage often gets people laid off and/or moved into the black market which generally has no benefits and other drawbacks. Not everyone who gets more education, and I mean trades training as well as college, immediately lands a great job, but they do tend to do better over the long term. Education has no draw backs except for high taxes to support it.
Walmart plays hard-ball. They closed a store in Quebec rather than deal with its newly unionized staff, but it is their right to do that. Boycott them if you disagree with their policies.
Most western countries sentencing is based on punishment and deterrence. The offender should be punished, and others should be deterred. For example, in my province it was rare for someone to be killed by a 'street race' twenty years ago. More people are dieing in street races so the penalties for causing death when street racing have risen dramatically in the last 5 years to punish street racers, but the main reason the sentences have gone up is deter street racers from even starting a street race.
Rehabilitation is mainly reserved for youth offenders.
It is called "run of the river" hydro. It generally produces a lot less electricity than a traditional dam, but it has a much smaller environmental foot print.
The first Patent Act of the United States was signed into law by President George Washington on April 10, 1790. Under this legislation, patent applicants petitioned the Secretary of State for the grant of a patent. The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of War and the Attorney General, determined whether the invention or discovery was "sufficiently useful and important." At that time, both the President and the Secretary of State signed patents.
The rest of the world uses first to file as it is simpler to administer and less likely to be "gamed". Much less lawsuits with first to file as the rules are much clearer.
USA infant mortality rate is the worst in the western world because you do not have socialized medicine. This means many poor people have very poor pre and post natal care, do not get good information on how to care for themselves while pregnant, and can only afford the bare minimum care. For more info USA Today article on USA Infant Mortality rates and obesity.
The meter has a long history and was in fact once defined as "one ten-millionth of the length of the Earth's meridian along a quadrant, that is the distance from the equator to the north pole". Then it was a number of standard wave lengths and not until 1983 that the meter was defined as how far light travels in a very short time. Wiki has a good article on the meter.
In a vacuum the speed of light is constant - even in a gravitational field as long as your are freely falling.
Traffic fines do not go to the police in Canada, all revenue goes to the Provincial government's general revenue which they do with as they please. Some communities who have their own police forces (the federal RCMP polices most small communities and many mid sized cities) do get a share of traffic fines back indirectly.
Even without a law specifically outlawing this despicable act, wouldn't it violate a person's basic rights as a human being to be tagged like cattle? While were at it, lets also require a barcode tattooed on the arm so we can check that the cattle have the correct tag embedded in them.
And yes, I DO think a person should put their basic human rights above paying the mortgage and bills. Christ, have a little human dignity. Have some guts. Stand up for your rights. I have quit jobs over management doing stupid things a LOT LESS egregious than this - and I have three kids.
Paying the mortgage is not an excuse to be a mindless sheeple.
Yes, but if everyone would behave like people and not sheep the idea of implanting one of these tags would never get off the ground.
Why do so many USA citizens think paying the mortgage is more important than their basic human rights? A law against implanting tags into people should not be required any more than a law against having your employees forced to eat shit at the company cafeteria. Normal people should reject both ideas as being insane.
So you are saying everyone should BE spineless sheep and let anyone they meet trample all over their rights? The store as NO right to detain someone unless they saw them stealing. If you don't want to let them do their routine bag check they have NO right to force you. The cop had NO right to demand ID. The guy cooperated completely except for not letting the store and the cop stomp all over his rights. More people should do what he did.
He wasn't coddled - he was arrested. The problem is do we want to live in a society that coddles people who violate your rights like the store employee, manager and cop did?
I have always thought that the point of voting was NOT to get my guy to win, but to choose the candidate that most closely matches by beliefs. A vote cannot be wasted if this is your goal.
The correct place to work towards getting your candidate to win is in the campaign leading up to the vote, not the vote itself. At this point I must admit that the effort to get a fringe candidate a real shot at winning could be wasted. Still, you should keep in mind that the two current USA "mainstream" political parties have not always existed.
Slashdot Mirror
And alcohol doesn't cause problems? Smoking doesn't hospitalise and kill millions?
Canada did not have universal health care in the 1940's and most people thought Tommy Douglas was crazy to try to get it implemented, but now we take it for granted. Sometimes we DO get a rainbow.
So what are the chances of getting copyright reformed? For people under 40 what percentage copy music, art, text, and other things at will and see nothing wrong with it? A pretty big percentage. These people are the up and coming voters and politicians and they could very well reign in the crazy copyright laws that exist now. Plus, if the record companies keep trying to retain their old business model by suing their customers they will go out of business, and no longer have lobbying money.
This could happen.
I am by nature a very tolerant person, but it is time for all good people to actively refute the ideas of the intolerant fundamentalists of all stripes. I am appalled that there are politicians in the USA who think it is OK to condemn people due to their religious beliefs, or lack of belief. For example, Bush isn't sure atheists are citizens. Some politicians think they should be able to tell you what you do in the privacy of your own home. But these guys are pikers compared to Religious fundamentalists. Even peaceful, tolerant Canada had to deal with this, Teen killed by father, and if we scoot over to Afghanistan we have the Taliban executing people who dare to try to educate girls.
Peaceful discourse is our best weapon.
Happy New year.
"Mother Nature", AKA the natural laws of the universe, doesn't care about us one way or the other. Mother Nature isn't even aware we exists as Mother Nature is NOT aware of anything. Attributing awareness to 'mother nature' is irrational.
Well, he may have stated his position strongly, but you can actually hold that position and still treat employees fairly, and foster loyalty among your employees.
Employees ARE hired to be paid wages/salary. Sometimes there are bonuses and commissions, but mainly you get paid for your time. Yes, the work you day on a particular day may make the company millions, but if things went bad that day the company may have lost millions. You get paid either way. The company takes the risks, and you get a nice safe wage, that is the deal. A good company will treat employees fairly within this framework, fair wages and benefits, training, a career path, no one is fired for non-job related things, fair compensation for over-time, flexible hours, sincere concern for balancing family and work.
A poor company will keep wages as low as possible, have high turn over to keep new low paid people working, never give training, always deny time off to attend funerals, fire people at random (just to keep them on their toes), never have enough staff to do a good job, etc...
It is perfectly fair for the company to reap the benefits of the risks it takes.
As is often the case, a post that only deals with the USA is stated as if it is a universal truth.
Free speech issues aside, the USA is just about the only western country with 'employed at will' default labor rules that allow employers to fire employees without cause. Where I live I would have to make outrageous lies about my company for management to have any chance of firing me for things I say on the internet.
Back to free speech. Free speech laws that don't protect you from your employer are NOT very free. You USA'ian's should do something about that.
Depends on where you live. Not every country has the same copyright and fair use rules as the USA. Some countries are more restrictive, and some are less restrictive. I can legally copy a Cd I purchased as much as a want and even distribute copies to my friends. I can't upload it to the internet.
and always pay off the WHOLE bill each month. Unless you have a horrible credit rating you can always get cheaper money than a credit card. But really, if you can't pay it off at the end of the month you really shouldn't buy it. Except for your mortgage, and maybe a car loan, you should avoid debt. Saving isn't that hard.
That sucks of course, but without arrest records being public the government can arrest anyone, anytime, and hold them for as long as they like without trial. Governments all over the world still do this. The problems with governments abusing their powers are so much greater than the problems of occasional mob justice that justice demands arrest records be public.
I do agree with you that a witness should get better protection. Witnesses are not being arrested and are not accused of any crimes.
As others have pointed out, this is a very bad idea. If officials do not have to publish arrest records then they can arrest anyone for any reason and hold them as long as they like. The reason all arrests are public is to protect citizens from government abuse. This is exactly why the secret star chambers being used to hold terrorists are such a bad idea - if the citizens let the government gt away with this for "terrorists" they will soon being trying to do it for dangerous criminals then regular criminals then you.
I this case I don't see the problem with outing an ADULT who has indirectly caused the death of a child. This person may not have committed a crime, but the public shaming should give others something to think about before they do something so stupid.
I disagree. I think you are confusing entitlements and rights. Rights are things other people can't stop you from doing. Entitlements are things other people give you. I'm all for everyone enjoying strong rights, like freedom of expression, freedom of movement, freedom to organise, etc... I'm against entitlements except for medical care and education. If you think anyone who works deserves more then you are free to give YOUR money to anyone you think needs help.
If you are stacking boxes you deserve a low wage. Stacking boxes should not be any ones career who expects to raise a family, it's a job for students. Running a cash register takes more skill and should pay more, but no one has the right to expect ANY old job to pay enough to support a particular life style.
What people expect has gone way up over the last 50 years. When I was very, very young the 'apartment' my dad rented for his family was an unheated attic (some heat drifted up from downstairs). It was CHEAP, and you could not rent it out today due to regulations. No one thought it odd that a poor family had no car or even a radio, and getting new shoes was a big deal. You could get by on a very low wage. I think it is harder to live on the cheap today due to high taxes, regulations, and much higher expectation as to what a minimal standard of living is. (Dad did work his way up the ladder of success and we were in the attic for only a year.)
If you want a higher wage, learn a skill that pays more. This is where a government provided entitlement to education can help. So why is it better to give out free education instead of just increasing the minimum wage? Increasing the minimum wage often gets people laid off and/or moved into the black market which generally has no benefits and other drawbacks. Not everyone who gets more education, and I mean trades training as well as college, immediately lands a great job, but they do tend to do better over the long term. Education has no draw backs except for high taxes to support it.
Walmart plays hard-ball. They closed a store in Quebec rather than deal with its newly unionized staff, but it is their right to do that. Boycott them if you disagree with their policies.
Most western countries sentencing is based on punishment and deterrence. The offender should be punished, and others should be deterred. For example, in my province it was rare for someone to be killed by a 'street race' twenty years ago. More people are dieing in street races so the penalties for causing death when street racing have risen dramatically in the last 5 years to punish street racers, but the main reason the sentences have gone up is deter street racers from even starting a street race.
Rehabilitation is mainly reserved for youth offenders.
It is called "run of the river" hydro. It generally produces a lot less electricity than a traditional dam, but it has a much smaller environmental foot print.
Wiki run of river
BC Hydro happy press release re run of river project
I was hoping to see some stats on how many crimes were solved using information from the cameras vs normal police work.
Why don't they let the public scan the stored video and look for crime? Many hands make light work.
The bar used to be very high:
The first Patent Act of the United States was signed into law by President George Washington on April 10, 1790. Under this legislation, patent applicants petitioned the Secretary of State for the grant of a patent. The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of War and the Attorney General, determined whether the invention or discovery was "sufficiently useful and important." At that time, both the President and the Secretary of State signed patents.
The rest of the world uses first to file as it is simpler to administer and less likely to be "gamed". Much less lawsuits with first to file as the rules are much clearer.
Algorithms should not be patentable.
USA infant mortality rate is the worst in the western world because you do not have socialized medicine. This means many poor people have very poor pre and post natal care, do not get good information on how to care for themselves while pregnant, and can only afford the bare minimum care. For more info USA Today article on USA Infant Mortality rates and obesity.
The meter has a long history and was in fact once defined as "one ten-millionth of the length of the Earth's meridian along a quadrant, that is the distance from the equator to the north pole". Then it was a number of standard wave lengths and not until 1983 that the meter was defined as how far light travels in a very short time. Wiki has a good article on the meter.
In a vacuum the speed of light is constant - even in a gravitational field as long as your are freely falling.
Traffic fines do not go to the police in Canada, all revenue goes to the Provincial government's general revenue which they do with as they please. Some communities who have their own police forces (the federal RCMP polices most small communities and many mid sized cities) do get a share of traffic fines back indirectly.
Even without a law specifically outlawing this despicable act, wouldn't it violate a person's basic rights as a human being to be tagged like cattle? While were at it, lets also require a barcode tattooed on the arm so we can check that the cattle have the correct tag embedded in them.
And yes, I DO think a person should put their basic human rights above paying the mortgage and bills. Christ, have a little human dignity. Have some guts. Stand up for your rights. I have quit jobs over management doing stupid things a LOT LESS egregious than this - and I have three kids.
Paying the mortgage is not an excuse to be a mindless sheeple.
Yes, but if everyone would behave like people and not sheep the idea of implanting one of these tags would never get off the ground.
Why do so many USA citizens think paying the mortgage is more important than their basic human rights? A law against implanting tags into people should not be required any more than a law against having your employees forced to eat shit at the company cafeteria. Normal people should reject both ideas as being insane.
So you are saying everyone should BE spineless sheep and let anyone they meet trample all over their rights? The store as NO right to detain someone unless they saw them stealing. If you don't want to let them do their routine bag check they have NO right to force you. The cop had NO right to demand ID. The guy cooperated completely except for not letting the store and the cop stomp all over his rights. More people should do what he did.
He wasn't coddled - he was arrested. The problem is do we want to live in a society that coddles people who violate your rights like the store employee, manager and cop did?
I have always thought that the point of voting was NOT to get my guy to win, but to choose the candidate that most closely matches by beliefs. A vote cannot be wasted if this is your goal.
The correct place to work towards getting your candidate to win is in the campaign leading up to the vote, not the vote itself. At this point I must admit that the effort to get a fringe candidate a real shot at winning could be wasted. Still, you should keep in mind that the two current USA "mainstream" political parties have not always existed.
I can't tell the difference between a DVD and a HD Disk unless the TV is over 42". My TV isn't that big so I don't care.