Facepalm (must I always spoonfeed you). Click on his hotlink and you will see why I responded. Also, the one nation (US with 50 states) versus one continent is totally asinine, at best, and was not the point of my response.
it's an evolutionary process. the DPRK is evolving and I currently like someone to play the antithetic role to the role of the US as global capitalist. we all have our parts (i personally enjoy socialist Europe), but i think your use of "stuck" and "trapped" demonstrate a good bit of ignorance.
I assume that you mean "we" in the sense of the US, which isn't going to do anything because it's essentially bankrupt, devoid of EU/NATO allies and "super scared" of China. The US is just going to verbally condemn the DPRK's actions. Unless you mean "we" in a different context, in which, I don't see China doing anything, Japan is too busy with China, Russia couldn't care less and the EU never does anything. What I am missing in your "hollow threat?"
they hardly have any infrastructure or resources and somehow manage to both demand foreign aid (and have it delivered) and stay relevant on a global stage (well above where they should be based on peaceful accomplishments). Well played DPRK, my hat is off to you!
I left the US and know a fair number of Americans with a doctorate residing in Europe. With 8-10 weeks/yr holiday mandatory by law why would one not want to? That's In addition to 10-18 months paid parental leave by child, excellent public transport, free day-care, schooling and university, reasonable pension plans and affordable health insurance. The real cream-of-the-crop STEM people are coming over here because the work/life balance is better. A lot of people chant that the US has the best university system and STEM jobs, but in our opinion, only the people that can't make it in the EU go to the US.
and by-passes the usually necessary requirement of not being able to find a "local" to do the work and the mandatory language requirements. STEM graduates almost always have special rights over here. In Germany (my current location), the Blue Card scheme is fully implemented... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Card_(European_Union)
I'm just trying to weigh the energy consumption versus potential benefit. The GIMPS homepage does a terrible job of explaining why (I'm not suggesting that there is no reason to do this) and a linked FAQ is hardly better ( http://primes.utm.edu/notes/faq/why.html ). Can anyone provide a better answer or instruct those running the GIMPS homepage to do so?
technically you probably didn't BUY the house, you probably took a mortgage, which does entitle the bank to sell your info to marketers (if you read the fine print.)
i had a sticker on my mail slot in my door (most mail still comes through the door in Stockholm) that said no advertisements. the post delivers respected it and i didn't get advertisements. it's great when common sense is employed, not even stuff that not mass marketed. in exchange, i left sweets for the post(wo)man.
actually, no one has anything to hide, because you can't hide anything. i have to say that it allows one to focus on what's important (i.e. life) and not stupid crap like checking credit reports... lol
... why demand the secrecy? Why not adopt a Nordic-style openness that shows who pays what taxes and where the taxes actually go. I also appreciated my annual credit history/report that was automatically mailed to my address when I lived in Stockholm. Why do you guys have to make everything so complicated? There's no security through obscurity.
most places will negotiate a longer rate at a hotel. Booking/paying for 2 weeks for 16 people, would usually facilitate a 25-40% discount. You do understand that €50k for two weeks of stay is pretty ridiculous. In Germany, you could rent a castle for that much for two weeks for 16 people. Or a monastery that still brews beer.
Also, you must not plan a lot of these trips. These laws are extremely common in many European cities. For example, take Stockholm, where the second-hand rental black market is huge. Thankfully, most websites work with SMS/cell numbers so you can't get the property address without communicating with directly the "owner." One can sort by area of the city, but one can't get the address from the webpage directly (pictures are available but no identifying marks.) Why can't the Dutch figure this small detail out?
70k for 16 people for 2 weeks = 300USD/day/person (roughly €250/person/day). That's a horrible price and as a European I can't believe that any rational person could be suckered into paying that much... lol.
If you were at ALDI/LIDL/Netto/Penny they should've taken your address before selling the card unless it came by mail. But most of the time, people don't care, especially if it's obvious that you're not German. Another possibility is that the address of the hotel was noted (as it should be in the database) and any name was accepted. It's an interesting system.
That's if I pay cash. I always have the option of paying directly from a bank account without showing ID. also, I'm sure that i could slip the guy an extra €50 or €100 and get him to make a mistake during "data entry."
T-mobile is horrible because the minutes expire after a year and it costs roughly 20 cents/min. Straight talk is a monthly plan for at least 30USD/mo.
Both options are terrible, at best.
Here (Germany), I can walk into a store, show ID, get a prepaid SIM put it into the phone, buy a recharge card for as little as €5, scratch the foil, send as SMS and have €5 immediately (at.05€/min or.€.05/MB).
Another way to think about it is that, I can walk into almost any third-party store and for €30 walk out in 15 mins with a new functioning Nokia candy-bar phone with credit. Can't really get that in the US?
... from the Apple Store when I was in US (549 USD). I wanted to use it for a month while I was there and I was shocked that you guys STILL don't have reasonable prepaid-SIM options. I consider reasonable to be filling in an online form, having it mailed to an address with credit already on it, getting on SMS when it's low on credit and recharging online or at a kiosk with a scratch card&SMS solution.
Slashdot Mirror
this may help as well ... http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_08-SEvm16XA/TJ-WcoY5_AI/AAAAAAAAAM8/riku7rYP76c/s1600/Texas-Europe.JPG
Facepalm (must I always spoonfeed you). Click on his hotlink and you will see why I responded. Also, the one nation (US with 50 states) versus one continent is totally asinine, at best, and was not the point of my response.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)
half way down on this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_European_Union
it's an evolutionary process. the DPRK is evolving and I currently like someone to play the antithetic role to the role of the US as global capitalist. we all have our parts (i personally enjoy socialist Europe), but i think your use of "stuck" and "trapped" demonstrate a good bit of ignorance.
horseback? hmmm, interesting tactical option.
I assume that you mean "we" in the sense of the US, which isn't going to do anything because it's essentially bankrupt, devoid of EU/NATO allies and "super scared" of China. The US is just going to verbally condemn the DPRK's actions. Unless you mean "we" in a different context, in which, I don't see China doing anything, Japan is too busy with China, Russia couldn't care less and the EU never does anything. What I am missing in your "hollow threat?"
they hardly have any infrastructure or resources and somehow manage to both demand foreign aid (and have it delivered) and stay relevant on a global stage (well above where they should be based on peaceful accomplishments). Well played DPRK, my hat is off to you!
I left the US and know a fair number of Americans with a doctorate residing in Europe. With 8-10 weeks/yr holiday mandatory by law why would one not want to? That's In addition to 10-18 months paid parental leave by child, excellent public transport, free day-care, schooling and university, reasonable pension plans and affordable health insurance. The real cream-of-the-crop STEM people are coming over here because the work/life balance is better. A lot of people chant that the US has the best university system and STEM jobs, but in our opinion, only the people that can't make it in the EU go to the US.
and by-passes the usually necessary requirement of not being able to find a "local" to do the work and the mandatory language requirements. STEM graduates almost always have special rights over here. In Germany (my current location), the Blue Card scheme is fully implemented ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Card_(European_Union)
as long as they could drive themselves to work? Ever hear of work/life balance? Or are you a work-every-day-until-I-die kind of person?
I'm just trying to weigh the energy consumption versus potential benefit. The GIMPS homepage does a terrible job of explaining why (I'm not suggesting that there is no reason to do this) and a linked FAQ is hardly better ( http://primes.utm.edu/notes/faq/why.html ). Can anyone provide a better answer or instruct those running the GIMPS homepage to do so?
technically you probably didn't BUY the house, you probably took a mortgage, which does entitle the bank to sell your info to marketers (if you read the fine print.)
i had a sticker on my mail slot in my door (most mail still comes through the door in Stockholm) that said no advertisements. the post delivers respected it and i didn't get advertisements. it's great when common sense is employed, not even stuff that not mass marketed. in exchange, i left sweets for the post(wo)man.
actually, no one has anything to hide, because you can't hide anything. i have to say that it allows one to focus on what's important (i.e. life) and not stupid crap like checking credit reports ... lol
Silly rabbit, Trix are for Kids!
... why demand the secrecy? Why not adopt a Nordic-style openness that shows who pays what taxes and where the taxes actually go. I also appreciated my annual credit history/report that was automatically mailed to my address when I lived in Stockholm. Why do you guys have to make everything so complicated? There's no security through obscurity.
most places will negotiate a longer rate at a hotel. Booking/paying for 2 weeks for 16 people, would usually facilitate a 25-40% discount. You do understand that €50k for two weeks of stay is pretty ridiculous. In Germany, you could rent a castle for that much for two weeks for 16 people. Or a monastery that still brews beer.
Also, you must not plan a lot of these trips. These laws are extremely common in many European cities. For example, take Stockholm, where the second-hand rental black market is huge. Thankfully, most websites work with SMS/cell numbers so you can't get the property address without communicating with directly the "owner." One can sort by area of the city, but one can't get the address from the webpage directly (pictures are available but no identifying marks.) Why can't the Dutch figure this small detail out?
70k for 16 people for 2 weeks = 300USD/day/person (roughly €250/person/day). That's a horrible price and as a European I can't believe that any rational person could be suckered into paying that much ... lol.
If you were at ALDI/LIDL/Netto/Penny they should've taken your address before selling the card unless it came by mail. But most of the time, people don't care, especially if it's obvious that you're not German. Another possibility is that the address of the hotel was noted (as it should be in the database) and any name was accepted. It's an interesting system.
Aldi-Talk, eh? An address is the same as an "ID" as everyone is listed in a central database.
That's if I pay cash. I always have the option of paying directly from a bank account without showing ID. also, I'm sure that i could slip the guy an extra €50 or €100 and get him to make a mistake during "data entry."
T-mobile is horrible because the minutes expire after a year and it costs roughly 20 cents/min. Straight talk is a monthly plan for at least 30USD/mo.
Both options are terrible, at best.
Here (Germany), I can walk into a store, show ID, get a prepaid SIM put it into the phone, buy a recharge card for as little as €5, scratch the foil, send as SMS and have €5 immediately (at .05€/min or .€.05/MB).
Another way to think about it is that, I can walk into almost any third-party store and for €30 walk out in 15 mins with a new functioning Nokia candy-bar phone with credit. Can't really get that in the US?
... from the Apple Store when I was in US (549 USD). I wanted to use it for a month while I was there and I was shocked that you guys STILL don't have reasonable prepaid-SIM options. I consider reasonable to be filling in an online form, having it mailed to an address with credit already on it, getting on SMS when it's low on credit and recharging online or at a kiosk with a scratch card&SMS solution.