As a further thought... what do you call Abu Ghraib? What do you call the CIA prisons in third-world countries? Our government is involved in a lot of shady shit overseas, and there's not much at the moment to prevent them from trying the same thing here. Think of Jose Padilla as the test case.
Note, that the results of an act don't matter to the determination of whether it was terrorism or not, the goals do. And the goals of the SWAT teams are apprehending suspects in a (serious) crime -- not political, religious, or ideological.
The SWAT team is a tool of a government which has been shown on more occasions than I care to count that it is a terrorist. Look at the brouhaha in California currently over medicinal marijuana -- the voters of that state want it legal, but federal authorities have raided companies doing medicinal marijuana business within state borders. That, to me, seems to fall straight in line with your definition -- calculated use of violence against civilians to attain a political goal.
And if you don't believe the PATRIOT Act and other post-2001 legislation are being used to political ends, I have a bridge in London to sell you. Even before 2001, the documented cases of FBI surveillance on non-violent protest groups are many and easy to find. When today's records are opened up 60 years from now, our grandchildren are going to wonder just what the hell happened that we gave up so many of our rights so easily.
I don't think anything's going to curb the problem, short of a full-scale military invasion of russia and china.
That will solve the problem, all right, but not the way you think. The United States is, and has been for several years, the primary originator of spam e-mail. E-Week published a report last month with a breakdown in numbers. Compared to 2004, when the United States was responsible for anywhere from 50 to 80 percent of spam worldwide, this isn't too bad... but you're still getting more spam from American computers than you're getting from China and Russia combined.
Is this any different then the stats of the dead tree style of spam that appears in my mailbox every day?
At least the senders pay for the dead-tree spam. The e-mail variety almost always ends up on someone else's tab, from the pwn3d home PC sending it to your 'Net connection receiving it.
This would be funny if it wasn't true - federal police are now being given access to military satellites.
I just want to point out, you are also being given access to military satellites. So when you're talking about federal police having access to military satellites, you might want to be more specific.
No worries.:) I was in a joint assignment for a little while about three years ago... the Marine unit there did a three-mile run as a warm-up for their actual PT, which was running the entire 12-mile installation perimeter. That and their professionalism impressed the hell out of me.
Not unless they're integrating this into the WAPS system, it won't. In the Air Force, the only points you get are for enlisted performance reports, specialty knowledge tests and promotion fitness examinations. Physical fitness affects the EPR score, but it's strictly a pass-fail... if you fail, that's going to reflect on your EPR.
I don't think the Pentagon gets it when it comes to information warfare. I really don't. Maybe it's just me, though, because every time I hear brass use the word "cyber," especially as a verb, the first thing that comes to my mind is cybersex.
Also, this excerpt amuses me:
Service members will receive points when they use the tool appropriately and lose points when they fail to act on a simulated threat, he said during a panel discussion in Washington last week sponsored by the Air Force Association.
Maybe the lieutenants need it, but I hope they spare the rest of the servicemembers from this. I mean, talk about patronizing. If Airman Snuffy earns 20 points, does he get a gold star or a day off?
Indeed. One wonders how Taco, et al, call themselves "editors" with a straight face.
Says PB, who knows from experience that part of being an editor is copyediting...
Re:It doesn't "remotely shut down vehicles"
on
Stalling Cars Via OnStar
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· Score: 4, Insightful
Ah, my old friend, the slippery slope. Long time, no see!
That's not slippery slope; it's precedent.
Look at seatbelts or airbags. Maybe you can remember a time before they were federally mandated. Even the middle tail light on your back window is put there by government mandate.
I'm not saying that seatbelts or airbags are bad things, don't get me wrong; but ideally, a government wouldn't need to tell manufacturers how to build their cars -- people would buy cars with those features because they want a car that's safe. Likewise, I'm not arguing that the ability to hit a kill switch on a stolen car is a bad thing... but as we've seen with everything from the Taser to the PATRIOT Act, the government will do as much as it can get away with, with the power it's given.
The moon is a great place for a few things - like a telescope. You can make a huge one that is always hidden from earth's interference.
Which is good for radio telescopes, but for most of the others, I'd be more concerned about protecting them from the sun.:)
One thing they'll have to deal with, though, is moon dust. Apparently the stuff carries a static charge and is very finely ground... will we have people with moon miner's disease 100 years from now?
Hi, Mr. Troll. Have a biscuit.
That the Bush administration is hostile to science is an established fact. Just ask the last Surgeon General.
The administration, Dr. Carmona said, would not allow him to speak or issue reports about stem cells, emergency contraception, sex education, or prison, mental and global health issues. Top officials delayed for years and tried to "water down" a landmark report on secondhand smoke, he said. Released last year, the report concluded that even brief exposure to cigarette smoke could cause immediate harm.
The only difference is that the religion in this case isn't Islam, but the almighty dollar.
"Science finds every soil barren in which miracles are taken literally and seriously and revelation is considered to provide authentic knowledge of the physical world. If the scientific method is trashed, no amount of resources or loud declarations of intent to develop science can compensate."
This seems to apply pretty well to the Bush administration.
I want something like that... only when I'm about to throw the monitor out the window, the computer will play a.wav file that says, "Don't taze me, bro!"
"Oh? Hmm, I've got the disc right here in my drawer. Hold on, I'll burn you a copy." *takes out a CD with 'Windows XP' and a serial number scribbled on it in marker*
Are these the same people who turn around and bitch about software activation?
Slashdot Mirror
As a further thought ... what do you call Abu Ghraib? What do you call the CIA prisons in third-world countries? Our government is involved in a lot of shady shit overseas, and there's not much at the moment to prevent them from trying the same thing here. Think of Jose Padilla as the test case.
The SWAT team is a tool of a government which has been shown on more occasions than I care to count that it is a terrorist. Look at the brouhaha in California currently over medicinal marijuana -- the voters of that state want it legal, but federal authorities have raided companies doing medicinal marijuana business within state borders. That, to me, seems to fall straight in line with your definition -- calculated use of violence against civilians to attain a political goal.
And if you don't believe the PATRIOT Act and other post-2001 legislation are being used to political ends, I have a bridge in London to sell you. Even before 2001, the documented cases of FBI surveillance on non-violent protest groups are many and easy to find. When today's records are opened up 60 years from now, our grandchildren are going to wonder just what the hell happened that we gave up so many of our rights so easily.
Alternately, you could say we live in a time where the government is the most effective terrorist.
... and God kills a kitten. Won't someone please think of the kittens?
Given our popularity with the rest of the world, this system will come in handy when they all decide to invade.
No worries. :) I was in a joint assignment for a little while about three years ago ... the Marine unit there did a three-mile run as a warm-up for their actual PT, which was running the entire 12-mile installation perimeter. That and their professionalism impressed the hell out of me.
Not unless they're integrating this into the WAPS system, it won't. In the Air Force, the only points you get are for enlisted performance reports, specialty knowledge tests and promotion fitness examinations. Physical fitness affects the EPR score, but it's strictly a pass-fail ... if you fail, that's going to reflect on your EPR.
I don't think the Pentagon gets it when it comes to information warfare. I really don't. Maybe it's just me, though, because every time I hear brass use the word "cyber," especially as a verb, the first thing that comes to my mind is cybersex.
Also, this excerpt amuses me:
Maybe the lieutenants need it, but I hope they spare the rest of the servicemembers from this. I mean, talk about patronizing. If Airman Snuffy earns 20 points, does he get a gold star or a day off?
We'll just add that $100 billion to the national debt. The check's in the mail ... really!
Indeed. One wonders how Taco, et al, call themselves "editors" with a straight face.
Says PB, who knows from experience that part of being an editor is copyediting ...
That's not slippery slope; it's precedent.
Look at seatbelts or airbags. Maybe you can remember a time before they were federally mandated. Even the middle tail light on your back window is put there by government mandate.
I'm not saying that seatbelts or airbags are bad things, don't get me wrong; but ideally, a government wouldn't need to tell manufacturers how to build their cars -- people would buy cars with those features because they want a car that's safe. Likewise, I'm not arguing that the ability to hit a kill switch on a stolen car is a bad thing ... but as we've seen with everything from the Taser to the PATRIOT Act, the government will do as much as it can get away with, with the power it's given.
Which is good for radio telescopes, but for most of the others, I'd be more concerned about protecting them from the sun. :)
One thing they'll have to deal with, though, is moon dust. Apparently the stuff carries a static charge and is very finely ground ... will we have people with moon miner's disease 100 years from now?
Yeah, I know. Teach me to trust Firefox's spell-checker. Still, it's closer than the GP.
This seems to apply pretty well to the Bush administration.
I want something like that ... only when I'm about to throw the monitor out the window, the computer will play a .wav file that says, "Don't taze me, bro!"