No, it would merely indicate that a non-lazy terrorist finally got his shit together and blew something up. Damn lazy terrorists. They are so soft and lazy they may as well not even exist. Oh wait...
If we had lots and lots of attacks on non-aviation or non-transportation targets or in the airport security lines themselves then you would have some evidence of a deterrence effect. So far you've got nothing more effective than a magic anti-tiger rock. Except that an anti-tiger rock won't cost you 7.85 billion USD per year. Of course if you wan't to pay that much I could sell you one. After all, you get what you pay for so my 8 billion dollar anti-tiger rock will be way more effective than one you found on the side of the road or whatever. Personally, I would feel just as safe if the US purchased an 8 billion dollar anti-terrorist rock and then dissolved the TSA. It would save taxpayers and travelers a whole lot of money in the long run as well since the rock is just a one time purchase.
Do you have a better word in English to mean something like, "any act which results in harm or injury to others or to their possesions"? Unfortunately "real crime" was the best I could come up with. It is true that the primary meaning of the word means something like, "any act which a government chooses to punish". Unfortunately that definition doesn't provide any way to distinguish crimes such as "being black" or "being Jewish" or "viewing pornography" (depending on the government) from ones such as murder. My purpose was to differentiate acts that are arbitrarily forbidden by some governments and which don't result in any harm to anyone and acts like murder, rape, assault, theft, and fraud which actually do result in harm to others.
Never been to prison, but I have read documented cases of guards beating prisoners as well as personal accounts I have read online. I did quite a bit of research into beatings as well as rape when I was facing a possible 2-3 year stretch in state prision. What I learned from my research was that rape is a lot less common than it used to be especially in state (as opposed to federal) prisons, but that sadistic guards are still around and you can definitely expect the occassional beating if a guard is in a bad mood or just very sadistic.
I have also been badly beaten by a police officer for challenging his authority right in front of lots of other cops who seemed to see nothing wrong with it and all of whom covered for him later. I even think there is a good chance that he actually intended to kill me. Obviously that experience tends to color my views of US law enforcement types in general.
I've been locked in a jail cell overnight a couple of times and I noticed that all the other guys referred to the cops as "sir". So I don't think I'm the only one who fears their arbitrary power. I realize that prison guards are not necessarily as sadistic and evil as cops, but I do think that the same sorts of power-mad bullies would be interested in both jobs. I couldn't help noticing that Charles Graner, the infamous Abu Ghraib torturer and sadist, was a prison guard in civilian life. The job tends to attract such people I think. Angry guys with something to prove. Obviously not all of them, but it doesn't have to be all of them to be the victim of one.
If no one is injured then there was no real crime. The purpose of criminal law is not to make life a risk free experience. It is to discourage people from intentionally harming each other. Of course, in the US many (psuedo) crimes are victimless. Those sorts of 'crimes' are just actions that someone takes that the government dislikes for various reasons. If no one is injured there is no reason for a legal system to do anything. There is no injustice to redress when nothing bad actually happens to anyone.
Actually I do plan to escape from this fascist 'paradise' at some point. Perhaps if you didn't take every phrase 100% literally you might learn to understand what smarter people are actually saying. Just a tip that may serve you later in life.
Nicer? I'm guessing you've never actually left your cushy first world paradise to discover that life in other countries is actually quite nice, and it can require less hours as a wage slave worker drone to survive. Immigrants who come here are often very surprised at how depressing life here actually is. Some are willing to grin and bare it because they have dollar signs in their eyes. Some work here for a year in very unpleasant conditions and then go back to their home country with great relief to get out of here. Others cannot take it even that long and return in just a month or two. Not everyone cares only about money. The ones who think life is mostly about how much money you make. Those are the immigrants who stay. If you have been very poor for most of your life it is an understandable attitude, but greed is still greed.
Agreed. I have lived in some very poor countries even by world standards and I never personally met or even heard of anyone locally actually starving to death. Being poor is unpleasant no matter what country you are in. By "poor" I mean that you only make enough money to just barely survive in whatever country you are living in. In the US that might mean $5000/year, even though that would be the equivalent of about 28 years of income for the average Cuban when I lived there. The cost of living varies by country. In the third world countries where I have lived the cost of living was very, very low compared to most first world countries.
When you mention these third world maladies are you speaking from personal experience? I have actually lived in poor third world countries for years. I speak from personal experience. Have you lived in poor third world countries?
Well I've never been to Africa, but I've spent quite a bit of time in Cuba and Laos. The average Cuban made around $10-$15 per month. The average Lao made around $70-$100 per month for working 60-100 hours per week. So, yes, I do think I have some understanding of what third world poverty is like.
The guy didn't harm anyone and we're locking him up in a cage for 5 years. Well I guess it serves him right for living in this stupid country. Being born here was the dumbest thing I've ever done and remaining here when I could leave is even dumber.
So you hate China so much that you would prefer to live in a US prison? Being poor in the US is also quite unpleasant even if you are not one of the unlucky ones snared by the ubiquitous prison system.
Driving while tired or while on cold medicine is also "wrong". 99% of drunk drivers don't harm anyone with their erratic drunk driving. Without a victim you're just trying to punish people for behaving in a way that you don't approve of. I don't approve of it either, but I think the current penalties for it are ridiculous. Drunk driving is just a form of reckless driving and the penalties should be similar. Well, assuming that you are in fact driving recklessly. It should be noticeable. More than just a number on a breath test.
In the US, the prison system is the solution to every problem. I always say that tourists should have a look inside our prisons to see what the real America is like. The New America is represented by a sadistic prison guard beating the shit out of an inmate for fun. Our culture is all about punishment and revenge and hurting people. A whole country full of angry, enthusiastic torturers who don't care what happens to anyone else but themselves.
Most of the time drunk driving is a victimless "crime". So I have little sympathy for people who want, say, the death penalty for driving drunk. Driving tired or driving while talking on a cell phone is also dangerous, but there are no draconian penalties for that. Driving while texting is even more dangerous than driving drunk but there is no comparitive penalty for that. I think in my state you get a $100 fine. Big deal. At least be consistent. The penalties for driving while texting should be at least as serious as driving while drunk or maybe more serious.
Having said all that I think drinking itself is pretty stupid. I don't drink at all. Maybe we could just outlaw alcohol again and take care of the whole problem all at once. If someone kills someone while driving drunk it isn't really much different from killing someone in other contexts. It's still vehicular manslaughter or whatever. A real crime. Getting drunk or stoned or being tired or talking on a cell phone or being distracted by someone in the back seat is not the crime. The crime part comes in when you actually injure someone.
Some managers don't like to hire people who seem overqualified in any way because they figure you will just end up quitting very soon when you find something better. They'd prefer someone like a recent immigrant who doesn't speak much English because they are less likely to be upwardly mobile or whatever. In any case they prefer to hire someone who seems like they will stick around for awhile after they have been trained and have figured out how to do the job. I think it's also helpful not too seem too intelligent.
They can't decide what goal to move toward? I have one. Alpha Centauri via pulsed nuclear propulsion and lunar mining and manufacturing. First, a permanent lunar base. Establish some photovoltaics and RTGs. Then a full fledged fission reactor. Some solar furnaces for melting ore. Then design/build some lunar rovers intended for carrying ore and some battery powered mining robots. Ideally some pitchblende or other uranium ores could be found. Locating the settlement within driving distance of such uranium sources would be a good idea. Of course being close to ice deposits would also be nice, but I would guess that both food and water would have to be sent from the earth.
Consensus science (taking a vote of scientist opinions) says no, but scientific method says quite possibly yes. I'm usually on the side of the skeptics, but in this case I certainly wouldn't rule out microbial life. It might help if we actually went looking for it again directly as we did with Viking. Maybe send a microscope robot and some more yummy broth for those hungry little Martians.
The other problem with the idea is that it will probably result in innocent people in jail or at least labeled as terrorists for the rest of their lives because of some silly thing they posted on the internet.
It's funny that you picked one of the few good things about this country. One of the few freedoms we have left in our fascist dystopia. Freedom has a price. It does makes it easier for nutters to do more damage. So what? Some people actually like freedom. Real freedom. The kind where you are allowed to do whatever you want so long as you are not hurting anyone else. That kind of freedom. The US doesn't represent that kind of freedom anymore. Not since the late 19th to early 20th century. The freedom to own firearms is one of the few freedoms we have left. At least in some states.
The Soviet Union had very low crime. Repressive dictatorships with police/enforcers on every corner tend to have low crime. You might prefer to live in such places, but I don't. This story is a perfect example of what is wrong with this country. Not the freedom to own guns (which you don't even have in some states), but the freedom of the government to persecute innocent people and cause an environment of pervasive fear. Not only fear of terrorists, but fear of being arrested and imprisoned for doing something you never realized was a crime. Joining the 3.1% of Americans living in prison.
But she understands authorities' concern in the wake of the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn.
"I think they did what they had to do, they were trained and you can't be too careful," she added.
Wow. Betrayed by his own mother. She seems to agree that this sort of thing is acceptable. She would just prefer that it not be done to her son. Because "He's kind, he's loving, he's brilliant." But if it were someone else's son who was being charged for ridiculous crimes he didn't committ that would be just fine because you "can't be too careful". And of course she would believe that where there is smoke there is fire and police would never arrest an innocent person.
"He drew a glove with flames coming out of it," his mother said.
Yikes. Well that changes everything. He's obviously a terrorist. Throw him in Gitmo and waterboard him until he talks about these flaming gloves of mass destruction. Get a signed confession from him and then execute this terrorist before he can kill anyone.
Shit, man. Where's your sense of self-preservation? I hope you don't live in the US or you are at least outside the country right now. One of the pro-authoritarian, pro-fascist slashdotters is going to report your post to Fatherland Security and we are going to be reading about you in the next story like this. You might even end up in Gitmo. Words and pictures are both taken nearly as seriously as actions these days.
Slashdot Mirror
To which the TSA brute would reply, "Do you want to fly today?"
No, it would merely indicate that a non-lazy terrorist finally got his shit together and blew something up. Damn lazy terrorists. They are so soft and lazy they may as well not even exist. Oh wait...
If we had lots and lots of attacks on non-aviation or non-transportation targets or in the airport security lines themselves then you would have some evidence of a deterrence effect. So far you've got nothing more effective than a magic anti-tiger rock. Except that an anti-tiger rock won't cost you 7.85 billion USD per year. Of course if you wan't to pay that much I could sell you one. After all, you get what you pay for so my 8 billion dollar anti-tiger rock will be way more effective than one you found on the side of the road or whatever. Personally, I would feel just as safe if the US purchased an 8 billion dollar anti-terrorist rock and then dissolved the TSA. It would save taxpayers and travelers a whole lot of money in the long run as well since the rock is just a one time purchase.
Do you have a better word in English to mean something like, "any act which results in harm or injury to others or to their possesions"? Unfortunately "real crime" was the best I could come up with. It is true that the primary meaning of the word means something like, "any act which a government chooses to punish". Unfortunately that definition doesn't provide any way to distinguish crimes such as "being black" or "being Jewish" or "viewing pornography" (depending on the government) from ones such as murder. My purpose was to differentiate acts that are arbitrarily forbidden by some governments and which don't result in any harm to anyone and acts like murder, rape, assault, theft, and fraud which actually do result in harm to others.
Never been to prison, but I have read documented cases of guards beating prisoners as well as personal accounts I have read online. I did quite a bit of research into beatings as well as rape when I was facing a possible 2-3 year stretch in state prision. What I learned from my research was that rape is a lot less common than it used to be especially in state (as opposed to federal) prisons, but that sadistic guards are still around and you can definitely expect the occassional beating if a guard is in a bad mood or just very sadistic.
I have also been badly beaten by a police officer for challenging his authority right in front of lots of other cops who seemed to see nothing wrong with it and all of whom covered for him later. I even think there is a good chance that he actually intended to kill me. Obviously that experience tends to color my views of US law enforcement types in general.
I've been locked in a jail cell overnight a couple of times and I noticed that all the other guys referred to the cops as "sir". So I don't think I'm the only one who fears their arbitrary power. I realize that prison guards are not necessarily as sadistic and evil as cops, but I do think that the same sorts of power-mad bullies would be interested in both jobs. I couldn't help noticing that Charles Graner, the infamous Abu Ghraib torturer and sadist, was a prison guard in civilian life. The job tends to attract such people I think. Angry guys with something to prove. Obviously not all of them, but it doesn't have to be all of them to be the victim of one.
If no one is injured then there was no real crime. The purpose of criminal law is not to make life a risk free experience. It is to discourage people from intentionally harming each other. Of course, in the US many (psuedo) crimes are victimless. Those sorts of 'crimes' are just actions that someone takes that the government dislikes for various reasons. If no one is injured there is no reason for a legal system to do anything. There is no injustice to redress when nothing bad actually happens to anyone.
Actually I do plan to escape from this fascist 'paradise' at some point. Perhaps if you didn't take every phrase 100% literally you might learn to understand what smarter people are actually saying. Just a tip that may serve you later in life.
Nicer? I'm guessing you've never actually left your cushy first world paradise to discover that life in other countries is actually quite nice, and it can require less hours as a wage slave worker drone to survive. Immigrants who come here are often very surprised at how depressing life here actually is. Some are willing to grin and bare it because they have dollar signs in their eyes. Some work here for a year in very unpleasant conditions and then go back to their home country with great relief to get out of here. Others cannot take it even that long and return in just a month or two. Not everyone cares only about money. The ones who think life is mostly about how much money you make. Those are the immigrants who stay. If you have been very poor for most of your life it is an understandable attitude, but greed is still greed.
Agreed. I have lived in some very poor countries even by world standards and I never personally met or even heard of anyone locally actually starving to death. Being poor is unpleasant no matter what country you are in. By "poor" I mean that you only make enough money to just barely survive in whatever country you are living in. In the US that might mean $5000/year, even though that would be the equivalent of about 28 years of income for the average Cuban when I lived there. The cost of living varies by country. In the third world countries where I have lived the cost of living was very, very low compared to most first world countries.
When you mention these third world maladies are you speaking from personal experience? I have actually lived in poor third world countries for years. I speak from personal experience. Have you lived in poor third world countries?
Well I've never been to Africa, but I've spent quite a bit of time in Cuba and Laos. The average Cuban made around $10-$15 per month. The average Lao made around $70-$100 per month for working 60-100 hours per week. So, yes, I do think I have some understanding of what third world poverty is like.
The guy didn't harm anyone and we're locking him up in a cage for 5 years. Well I guess it serves him right for living in this stupid country. Being born here was the dumbest thing I've ever done and remaining here when I could leave is even dumber.
So you hate China so much that you would prefer to live in a US prison? Being poor in the US is also quite unpleasant even if you are not one of the unlucky ones snared by the ubiquitous prison system.
Driving while tired or while on cold medicine is also "wrong". 99% of drunk drivers don't harm anyone with their erratic drunk driving. Without a victim you're just trying to punish people for behaving in a way that you don't approve of. I don't approve of it either, but I think the current penalties for it are ridiculous. Drunk driving is just a form of reckless driving and the penalties should be similar. Well, assuming that you are in fact driving recklessly. It should be noticeable. More than just a number on a breath test.
All it means is that you didn't hurt anyone and that you didn't commit any sort of real crime. No victim. No crime. Get it?
In the US, the prison system is the solution to every problem. I always say that tourists should have a look inside our prisons to see what the real America is like. The New America is represented by a sadistic prison guard beating the shit out of an inmate for fun. Our culture is all about punishment and revenge and hurting people. A whole country full of angry, enthusiastic torturers who don't care what happens to anyone else but themselves.
Most of the time drunk driving is a victimless "crime". So I have little sympathy for people who want, say, the death penalty for driving drunk. Driving tired or driving while talking on a cell phone is also dangerous, but there are no draconian penalties for that. Driving while texting is even more dangerous than driving drunk but there is no comparitive penalty for that. I think in my state you get a $100 fine. Big deal. At least be consistent. The penalties for driving while texting should be at least as serious as driving while drunk or maybe more serious.
Having said all that I think drinking itself is pretty stupid. I don't drink at all. Maybe we could just outlaw alcohol again and take care of the whole problem all at once. If someone kills someone while driving drunk it isn't really much different from killing someone in other contexts. It's still vehicular manslaughter or whatever. A real crime. Getting drunk or stoned or being tired or talking on a cell phone or being distracted by someone in the back seat is not the crime. The crime part comes in when you actually injure someone.
Some managers don't like to hire people who seem overqualified in any way because they figure you will just end up quitting very soon when you find something better. They'd prefer someone like a recent immigrant who doesn't speak much English because they are less likely to be upwardly mobile or whatever. In any case they prefer to hire someone who seems like they will stick around for awhile after they have been trained and have figured out how to do the job. I think it's also helpful not too seem too intelligent.
They can't decide what goal to move toward? I have one. Alpha Centauri via pulsed nuclear propulsion and lunar mining and manufacturing. First, a permanent lunar base. Establish some photovoltaics and RTGs. Then a full fledged fission reactor. Some solar furnaces for melting ore. Then design/build some lunar rovers intended for carrying ore and some battery powered mining robots. Ideally some pitchblende or other uranium ores could be found. Locating the settlement within driving distance of such uranium sources would be a good idea. Of course being close to ice deposits would also be nice, but I would guess that both food and water would have to be sent from the earth.
Incredibly harsh environment for earth-like life and seemingly nothing to eat, but those are a priori arguments. Not science.
The Viking labeled release experiment
may have already found life life on Mars back in 1976.
Maybe.
Consensus science (taking a vote of scientist opinions) says no, but scientific method says quite possibly yes. I'm usually on the side of the skeptics, but in this case I certainly wouldn't rule out microbial life. It might help if we actually went looking for it again directly as we did with Viking. Maybe send a microscope robot and some more yummy broth for those hungry little Martians.
The other problem with the idea is that it will probably result in innocent people in jail or at least labeled as terrorists for the rest of their lives because of some silly thing they posted on the internet.
It's funny that you picked one of the few good things about this country. One of the few freedoms we have left in our fascist dystopia. Freedom has a price. It does makes it easier for nutters to do more damage. So what? Some people actually like freedom. Real freedom. The kind where you are allowed to do whatever you want so long as you are not hurting anyone else. That kind of freedom. The US doesn't represent that kind of freedom anymore. Not since the late 19th to early 20th century. The freedom to own firearms is one of the few freedoms we have left. At least in some states.
The Soviet Union had very low crime. Repressive dictatorships with police/enforcers on every corner tend to have low crime. You might prefer to live in such places, but I don't. This story is a perfect example of what is wrong with this country. Not the freedom to own guns (which you don't even have in some states), but the freedom of the government to persecute innocent people and cause an environment of pervasive fear. Not only fear of terrorists, but fear of being arrested and imprisoned for doing something you never realized was a crime. Joining the 3.1% of Americans living in prison.
But she understands authorities' concern in the wake of the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn.
"I think they did what they had to do, they were trained and you can't be too careful," she added.
Wow. Betrayed by his own mother. She seems to agree that this sort of thing is acceptable. She would just prefer that it not be done to her son. Because "He's kind, he's loving, he's brilliant." But if it were someone else's son who was being charged for ridiculous crimes he didn't committ that would be just fine because you "can't be too careful". And of course she would believe that where there is smoke there is fire and police would never arrest an innocent person.
"He drew a glove with flames coming out of it," his mother said.
Yikes. Well that changes everything. He's obviously a terrorist. Throw him in Gitmo and waterboard him until he talks about these flaming gloves of mass destruction. Get a signed confession from him and then execute this terrorist before he can kill anyone.
Shit, man. Where's your sense of self-preservation? I hope you don't live in the US or you are at least outside the country right now. One of the pro-authoritarian, pro-fascist slashdotters is going to report your post to Fatherland Security and we are going to be reading about you in the next story like this. You might even end up in Gitmo. Words and pictures are both taken nearly as seriously as actions these days.
Well at least in the US. I don't think this is some kind of universal truth.
It hasn't occurred to you that it might be the one who is being bullied that would carry the gun?