The worst part of all this is that his political calculation is correct: Next election I'm probably going to be voting for him. Because the other option will be a lot worse.
Why the singular use of "option"? There are more than two options, you know. Personally, if there is no third party candidate to vote for, I write in myself.
And because we actually have functioning democracies in the Western world, you never know what kind of idiots will be in the governments tomorrow.
Depends on how far west you go, perhaps. I'm west of the Atlantic and I don't live in a functioning democracy, and I know just what kind of idiots will be in government tomorrow. I agree with the rest of your post, however.
As a motorhead, I absolutely agree. I drive a modified, turbocharged car and I can't wait until electrics are ready for prime time. Horsepower gets all the press, but torque is what it's really all about.
If that were the case, why did the housing bubble happen outside the US as well? US regulations don't apply outside the US, yet there was a global bubble. how do US regulations on bank account for that?
The thing about capitalism though is that the players have an incentive to act in ways that destabilize the system. For capitalism to work well you need to have competition, good information on the part of the consumer, and the ability for new players to enter the market. But those supplying the market are incentivised to eliminate competition, hide faults from the consumer, and erect barriers to entry for new players. So seen from this angle, what is happening now is a natural outcome of this system being left to its own devices.
That's irrelevant. Individual humans behave unpredictably. People, en masse, behave in ways that are actually highly predictable because the unpredictable actions of one person are balanced by the "unpredictable" action of another person doing something relatively opposite.
Or, in other words a person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it!
So, seriously, I don't understand how any non-imbecile can consider this seriously for even a moment. I mean, being ignorant of technology is one thing, being a complete dumbfuck is quite another.
The reason it hasn't happened is that almost no one wants to do it, and even fewer have the wherewithal and resources. The threat is completely overblown.
Not a response to any particular threat? Then why the fuck are you doing it?! Americans take their rights for granted so much that they don't even realize when they are losing them.
From a security perspective, yes it is a good thing. But at the same time the level of secrecy and classification has become absurd. It is undermining our democracy because the citizenry cannot find out some basic stuff that their government is doing. It is (or should be) common knowledge that the three letter agencies (and a bunch you've never heard of) spy on Americans on an ongoing basis. We can't find out just what they are doing because it is classified, and if we try to sue we have no standing because we can't prove we were spied upon because it's classified. That is absurd and Kafkaesque. These days leakers are the only way we find out about the shenanigans our agencies pull.
On a side note "senior white house officials speaking on the condition of anonymity" leak classified material all the time. But they are never prosecuted. I wonder why.
They produce liquidity in that they are willing buyers of whatever is being speculated upon. Their purpose is to increase the balance of their and their clients' bank accounts.
Not from a privacy standpoint you don't. If you use a credit or debit card for all of your purchases you are painting a very detailed picture for data miners. Once that information is cross-referenced with other financial and demographic data, one gets a pretty clear picture of who you are and what you do. And those collecting these data, whether it be advertisers or NSA/DHS, have only their self-interest in mind, and not your best interest.
If you are technically inclined, and can build web pages on your own, why are you using basic website building software? Dreamweaver still exists you know. Or do you type all your HTML by hand because you are that hard-core?
And what's up with people taking their cars to mechanics? Why don't they go and become automotive technicians themselves, rather than taking the easy and lazy way out and letting someone else do it? Maybe you don't need to pay someone to have a Unix system, but most people do. Life is too short and the world too complex for a person to become an expert in everything. Therefore, it is nice to have simpler versions of things to open up more possibilities to more people. Or we could just criticize everyone for not learning PhD level math.
Yes, they did suck. I used Windows Mobile 5 on a Palm Treo, and it crashed more than a Hollywood stunt man. Stock phone, no add-ons. My favorites were when it would crash in the middle of a call (hear nothing and look at the phone to find it rebooting) and when it would crash when a call came in. Gotta love having to remove the battery to stop the ringing! It wasn't hardware either. I had the phone replaced three times, always had the same issues. It finally went away when I got a Treo running Palm OS.
Agreed. Apple definitely pushes technology forward. Windows and Android probably wouldn't exist without Apple, since both are loose copies of Apple products. But the competition from both also pushes Apple forward. My only quibble is that Windows Mobile failed not because of a lack of "cool" but because the thing really sucked. The stability of Win Mobile 5 on my Palm Treo was atrocious. It would routinely crash when a call came in, requiring battery removal to stop the ringing.
Slashdot Mirror
The worst part of all this is that his political calculation is correct: Next election I'm probably going to be voting for him. Because the other option will be a lot worse.
Why the singular use of "option"? There are more than two options, you know. Personally, if there is no third party candidate to vote for, I write in myself.
No chocolate? Dude, you're missing out.
It is not addictive. There is no withdrawal when stopping usage.
And because we actually have functioning democracies in the Western world, you never know what kind of idiots will be in the governments tomorrow.
Depends on how far west you go, perhaps. I'm west of the Atlantic and I don't live in a functioning democracy, and I know just what kind of idiots will be in government tomorrow. I agree with the rest of your post, however.
As a motorhead, I absolutely agree. I drive a modified, turbocharged car and I can't wait until electrics are ready for prime time. Horsepower gets all the press, but torque is what it's really all about.
If that were the case, why did the housing bubble happen outside the US as well? US regulations don't apply outside the US, yet there was a global bubble. how do US regulations on bank account for that?
http://seekingalpha.com/article/124306-the-global-housing-bubble-it-s-a-small-world-after-all
The thing about capitalism though is that the players have an incentive to act in ways that destabilize the system. For capitalism to work well you need to have competition, good information on the part of the consumer, and the ability for new players to enter the market. But those supplying the market are incentivised to eliminate competition, hide faults from the consumer, and erect barriers to entry for new players. So seen from this angle, what is happening now is a natural outcome of this system being left to its own devices.
That's irrelevant. Individual humans behave unpredictably. People, en masse, behave in ways that are actually highly predictable because the unpredictable actions of one person are balanced by the "unpredictable" action of another person doing something relatively opposite.
Or, in other words a person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it!
So, seriously, I don't understand how any non-imbecile can consider this seriously for even a moment. I mean, being ignorant of technology is one thing, being a complete dumbfuck is quite another.
Witness the power of greed and entitlement.
They're also CIA.
Don't forget about mercenaries, er, I mean contractors. They aren't soldiers either and they'll still be there.
It may not be a joke, but it's still funny! Way to drive business out of your state Louisiana!
The reason it hasn't happened is that almost no one wants to do it, and even fewer have the wherewithal and resources. The threat is completely overblown.
Not a response to any particular threat? Then why the fuck are you doing it?! Americans take their rights for granted so much that they don't even realize when they are losing them.
Yeah, no, sorry, too profitable.
You think? Ask Abdulrahman al-Awlaki about how his US citizenship helped him.
From a security perspective, yes it is a good thing. But at the same time the level of secrecy and classification has become absurd. It is undermining our democracy because the citizenry cannot find out some basic stuff that their government is doing. It is (or should be) common knowledge that the three letter agencies (and a bunch you've never heard of) spy on Americans on an ongoing basis. We can't find out just what they are doing because it is classified, and if we try to sue we have no standing because we can't prove we were spied upon because it's classified. That is absurd and Kafkaesque. These days leakers are the only way we find out about the shenanigans our agencies pull.
On a side note "senior white house officials speaking on the condition of anonymity" leak classified material all the time. But they are never prosecuted. I wonder why.
They produce liquidity in that they are willing buyers of whatever is being speculated upon. Their purpose is to increase the balance of their and their clients' bank accounts.
Not from a privacy standpoint you don't. If you use a credit or debit card for all of your purchases you are painting a very detailed picture for data miners. Once that information is cross-referenced with other financial and demographic data, one gets a pretty clear picture of who you are and what you do. And those collecting these data, whether it be advertisers or NSA/DHS, have only their self-interest in mind, and not your best interest.
By what mechanism does lower pay lead to higher economic growth?
Yes, there is a hole, and it's you.
If you are technically inclined, and can build web pages on your own, why are you using basic website building software? Dreamweaver still exists you know. Or do you type all your HTML by hand because you are that hard-core?
And what's up with people taking their cars to mechanics? Why don't they go and become automotive technicians themselves, rather than taking the easy and lazy way out and letting someone else do it? Maybe you don't need to pay someone to have a Unix system, but most people do. Life is too short and the world too complex for a person to become an expert in everything. Therefore, it is nice to have simpler versions of things to open up more possibilities to more people. Or we could just criticize everyone for not learning PhD level math.
Yes, they did suck. I used Windows Mobile 5 on a Palm Treo, and it crashed more than a Hollywood stunt man. Stock phone, no add-ons. My favorites were when it would crash in the middle of a call (hear nothing and look at the phone to find it rebooting) and when it would crash when a call came in. Gotta love having to remove the battery to stop the ringing! It wasn't hardware either. I had the phone replaced three times, always had the same issues. It finally went away when I got a Treo running Palm OS.
Agreed. Apple definitely pushes technology forward. Windows and Android probably wouldn't exist without Apple, since both are loose copies of Apple products. But the competition from both also pushes Apple forward. My only quibble is that Windows Mobile failed not because of a lack of "cool" but because the thing really sucked. The stability of Win Mobile 5 on my Palm Treo was atrocious. It would routinely crash when a call came in, requiring battery removal to stop the ringing.
That you should be grateful to the Americans regardless of the circumstance?