It is a scene directed by Mel Gibson called "The Passion of the Binks". You get to watch Jar-Jar get whipped for 30 minutes straight then nailed by his ears to the side of an Imperial Walker.
Lets face it, a determined kid is going to be able to see this movie no matter what. There are so many ways to see movies with DVDs, on-demand, friend's house, etc that except for XXX a kid is going to see it. And with the internet even the XXX obstacle is a maybe.
The real inequity in this is country is now economic as the middle class dwindles and the bulk of the nation's capital goes into fewer and fewer hands. We are watching the birth of an American aristocracy that we haven't seen since the days of the robber barons. The government's obscene killing of the estate tax (a gift for all of you millionaires) is the icing on the cake.
The Mars base idea truly is a waste of money. It would be for purely emotional purposes. If people are so determined to stick some folks up there they should work on a moon base instead. The lack of an atmosphere would make it far more useful for astronomical research. You'd need some extra shielding against solar radiation though. It proximity to the earth would make resupply and rescue more practical.
Sounds like what REI does. They give you the option of picking up your order at one of their stores so you don't have to pay for shipping (they must add it onto their regular distribution center delivery trucks). The down side is you have to wait about 2 weeks, at least, to get your order but I'm usually not in a rush anyway.
In that case they should come up with a badge with Disney on it called "Whining to Congress until you get copyright laws extended for a period close to 100 yrs so you never have to put anything into the public domain even though many of your ideas originated from the public domain."
I've gotten good at recognizing when I'm starting to fall for "I'm going to miss out" thinking. The only time you should follow this is for something you truly need right then, like your tank is close to empty and you see a gas station.
The vast majority of the time the thing we are buying we truly don't have to have. It is an emotional purchase. Now I'll look at something I'm interested in and think to myself "This, or something similar or even better, is going to show up again eventually so do I really need it right now?" I'll keep on walking and the urge to buy disapears and that thing I thought I needed so badly doesn't seem so important anymore.
If you must scratch the urge to buy then filling your shopping cart online then ditching it is a great way to do it. Wish lists are good too. You feel like you shopped without spending any money. Maybe that is what a lot of those abandoned online carts are from. In a real store picking up items, carrying them around for a while then putting them back just before you leave feels the same way also.
The ability to compare prices and do research quickly is the big thing that stops me from impulse buying. Plus the fact that I don't feel any emotional prodding of the "Well I drove all the way out here so I might as well buy it" sort.
My usual process is this:
1. Check major sites' descriptions and prices (i.e. REI, Amazon, etc)
2. Look up product reviews via Google and review sites (Toms Hardware, etc)
3. Check similar items, if any
4. Check prices via Froogle and Pricewatch
5. Pick some sellers and check shipping costs on their sites
6. Actually buy something
Obviously this is a lot more fussing than I'd do in a brick/mortar store. I might spend weeks or months before I actually buy something.
Pricewise shipping costs are the real killer for many online purchases. When you add in the cost of shipping the savings vs. buying it in a store frequently disappear, especially for something heavy like a monitor.
Many sites keep your cart around but they require that you register with their site so they have someway of keeping track of you. They can't do it via cookies or IP because you may be on a public machine or sharing it with others so they need a way to track it on their side.
For example, Amazon and Campmor keep my carts but I had to create an account first.
"They have the greatest chance of continuing the species line."
Not necessarily. A paranoid creature might be to fearful to ever hunt and/or forage properly and would constantly be weakened and vunerable to disease. Their lack of social contact would also exclude them from the safety in numbers and support of the group also lowering their chances.
A healthy sense of risk doesn't necessarily make you altruistic or "soft" as you snidely put it, just reasonable. Judging from how strong the urge to socialize is in primates (including us of course) after millions of years of evolution I'd say that paranoia is not a strong predictor for survival.
"And that is the problem with the environmental movement. I don't see the millions of environmentalists giving up electricity or their homes in the suburbs or the country."
That is a very trite response. It is a common tactic in a debate to immediately jump to an extreme position. People aren't being told to give up electricity, just use less and be more efficient. This should be a laudible goal by anyone's standards. To say "but you use it!" is an asinine response. We have to function in the society we are born in, that includes having to use a car and electricity. It doesn't mean we can't push for change.
We saw BBTS when it came out, long before ND, and we were in the mood for that type of movie. I think (it was many years ago) the thing we didn't like was the way the plot was seemed inexplicable and plodding and then at the end the guy gets brutally killed for no obvious reason. Maybe I'd have to see it a 2nd time. Like I said though it is a matter of personal taste.
Slashdot Mirror
A home PBX is to the average person's actual phone needs as a Hummer is to the average person's actual driving needs.
It is a scene directed by Mel Gibson called "The Passion of the Binks". You get to watch Jar-Jar get whipped for 30 minutes straight then nailed by his ears to the side of an Imperial Walker.
(old joke ref)
Putting a sewage treatment plant next to the recreation area is proof that god is a civil engineer.
I think if you are going to compare drug dealing to McDonalds it is probably a case of preferring to make $100 illegally than to make $1 legally.
How about hardware based encryption built into the keyboard itself?
Nope, now it is. I like how slashdot just chops off the sig instead of giving a 120 char warning.
Hmmm...typo fixed. Thanks for the free proofreading.
I hope Bill had to use Google to look up info on Google. Tee Hee!
To quote Nelson Muntz, "HA HA!"
He doesn't die, he ends up in a metal bikini dancing for Jabba.
Lets face it, a determined kid is going to be able to see this movie no matter what. There are so many ways to see movies with DVDs, on-demand, friend's house, etc that except for XXX a kid is going to see it. And with the internet even the XXX obstacle is a maybe.
The real inequity in this is country is now economic as the middle class dwindles and the bulk of the nation's capital goes into fewer and fewer hands. We are watching the birth of an American aristocracy that we haven't seen since the days of the robber barons. The government's obscene killing of the estate tax (a gift for all of you millionaires) is the icing on the cake.
The Mars base idea truly is a waste of money. It would be for purely emotional purposes. If people are so determined to stick some folks up there they should work on a moon base instead. The lack of an atmosphere would make it far more useful for astronomical research. You'd need some extra shielding against solar radiation though. It proximity to the earth would make resupply and rescue more practical.
Sounds like what REI does. They give you the option of picking up your order at one of their stores so you don't have to pay for shipping (they must add it onto their regular distribution center delivery trucks). The down side is you have to wait about 2 weeks, at least, to get your order but I'm usually not in a rush anyway.
"His corpse was later found sealed in a mylar bag so he'd always be in 'near mint' condition."
Well, Hong Kong is the perfect place to earn your "The Ruling Party is Not to be Questioned" merit badge.
They could issue that one in this country pretty soon.
"doing the right thing"
In that case they should come up with a badge with Disney on it called "Whining to Congress until you get copyright laws extended for a period close to 100 yrs so you never have to put anything into the public domain even though many of your ideas originated from the public domain."
CNet Shopper lets you type in your zipcode to get tax and shipping costs along with price listings on their comparison screens.
I've gotten good at recognizing when I'm starting to fall for "I'm going to miss out" thinking. The only time you should follow this is for something you truly need right then, like your tank is close to empty and you see a gas station.
The vast majority of the time the thing we are buying we truly don't have to have. It is an emotional purchase. Now I'll look at something I'm interested in and think to myself "This, or something similar or even better, is going to show up again eventually so do I really need it right now?" I'll keep on walking and the urge to buy disapears and that thing I thought I needed so badly doesn't seem so important anymore.
If you must scratch the urge to buy then filling your shopping cart online then ditching it is a great way to do it. Wish lists are good too. You feel like you shopped without spending any money. Maybe that is what a lot of those abandoned online carts are from. In a real store picking up items, carrying them around for a while then putting them back just before you leave feels the same way also.
(Referring to a car model)
"It is a LIMITED edition. Limited. Right, it is LIMITED to how many we can sell."
The ability to compare prices and do research quickly is the big thing that stops me from impulse buying. Plus the fact that I don't feel any emotional prodding of the "Well I drove all the way out here so I might as well buy it" sort.
My usual process is this:
1. Check major sites' descriptions and prices (i.e. REI, Amazon, etc)
2. Look up product reviews via Google and review sites (Toms Hardware, etc)
3. Check similar items, if any
4. Check prices via Froogle and Pricewatch
5. Pick some sellers and check shipping costs on their sites
6. Actually buy something
Obviously this is a lot more fussing than I'd do in a brick/mortar store. I might spend weeks or months before I actually buy something.
Pricewise shipping costs are the real killer for many online purchases. When you add in the cost of shipping the savings vs. buying it in a store frequently disappear, especially for something heavy like a monitor.
Many sites keep your cart around but they require that you register with their site so they have someway of keeping track of you. They can't do it via cookies or IP because you may be on a public machine or sharing it with others so they need a way to track it on their side.
For example, Amazon and Campmor keep my carts but I had to create an account first.
From Boing Boing
"They have the greatest chance of continuing the species line."
Not necessarily. A paranoid creature might be to fearful to ever hunt and/or forage properly and would constantly be weakened and vunerable to disease. Their lack of social contact would also exclude them from the safety in numbers and support of the group also lowering their chances.
A healthy sense of risk doesn't necessarily make you altruistic or "soft" as you snidely put it, just reasonable. Judging from how strong the urge to socialize is in primates (including us of course) after millions of years of evolution I'd say that paranoia is not a strong predictor for survival.
"And that is the problem with the environmental movement. I don't see the millions of environmentalists giving up electricity or their homes in the suburbs or the country."
That is a very trite response. It is a common tactic in a debate to immediately jump to an extreme position. People aren't being told to give up electricity, just use less and be more efficient. This should be a laudible goal by anyone's standards. To say "but you use it!" is an asinine response. We have to function in the society we are born in, that includes having to use a car and electricity. It doesn't mean we can't push for change.
(Warning, BBTS spoiler!)
We saw BBTS when it came out, long before ND, and we were in the mood for that type of movie. I think (it was many years ago) the thing we didn't like was the way the plot was seemed inexplicable and plodding and then at the end the guy gets brutally killed for no obvious reason. Maybe I'd have to see it a 2nd time. Like I said though it is a matter of personal taste.