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User: robinsoz

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  1. The metric system is better if you are trying to do conversion mathematically - but the english system is better if you are trying to divide things up without a calibrated measuring device. If you have a gallon of water, it is relatively easy to split it up into quarts or cups or whatever as long as you have any sort of equally sized containers. The same goes for the units of weight as long as you have something you can use as a balance - and it is not too hard to do the same with the units of distance.

  2. Re:Where are the gun nuts when you need them? on DOJ Threatens To Seize iOS Source Code (idownloadblog.com) · · Score: 1

    The reason for the 2nd amendment is to protect us from our government - but the fact is that so far we have not come to the point where taking up guns for such a purpose would be legitimate. The point at which it becomes legitimate is the point when the government is both disregarding the Constitution _and_ the democratic will of the people. It is harder to oppress an unwilling armed populace than an unarmed one. A few nuts marching around with their weapons talking about rebellion when most of the people (rightly or wrongly) think everything is OK is not what the founders were thinking of when they put in the second amendment. Even if they (the nuts) could stare down the tanks and heavy artillery, they really have no legitimate mandate to impose their will on the rest of their fellow citizens. On the other hand if the President directs the military to go kill anyone who wears glasses (this actually did happen in one country in the last century) it will be a lot harder for the military to carry out those orders if the citizens are armed.

  3. Re:Goverrnment on DOJ Threatens To Seize iOS Source Code (idownloadblog.com) · · Score: 0

    I am a lifelong Republican, and though I probably could not force myself to vote for Hillary, I find myself thinking she would be better for the country than Trump. This is not to say anything about Hillary - I dread the possibility of her being president - but Trump really is that bad.

  4. Re:Let the market decide. on Clinton Plan To Power Every US Home With Renewables By 2027 Is Achievable · · Score: 1

    I live in a county which is mostly covered by a private fire department - actually there are three but there is one which the majority of people subscribe to. My brother-in-law is actually a firefighter employed by the larger one. If you have a structure fire they and do not have a contract with one of the three they will show up at your house, start fighting the fire and at the same time will be asking you to sign a contract acknowledging a large bill for the cost of fighting the fire which if not paid will become a lien against your property. If you object to signing the contract they will stand back, make sure the fire doesn't spread to your neighbor's property and let you deal with the fire on your own. If the wrong fire department shows up and the one you have a contract with is not there the three companies have an agreement with each other to reimburse the costs of the fire. They respond to automobile accidents and the like free of charge as a community service. The system seems to work OK. I have never heard of anyone complaining about it except one guy who had recently moved to the county from somewhere in California a few years back and ran for county commissioner on the platform that a private fire department was somehow immoral and we needed to go to a tax supported fire district. Even though he was registered Republican our local (mostly moribund) Democratic party put their support behind him and he was still defeated in a landslide.

  5. Re:Equal Protection? on Accused Rogue Admin Terry Childs Makes His Case · · Score: 1

    Actually, this was largely the system of slavery allowed in the Old Testament. You harm somebody - you have to make restitution. If you didn't have enough money to make restitution, you could be sold as a slave and the money would be given to whoever you had harmed. In general - with some exceptions - the term of slavery was limited to 6 years. Keeping someone as a slave longer than 6 years in many cases (even for a crime) would be considered kidnapping - which carried the death sentence. Seems like a much better system than letting criminals sit around in jail. When people try to say the Bible justifies slavery as it was practiced in the United States, they are not reading their Bibles.

  6. Mod Parent Up on FSF Subpoenaed by SCO · · Score: 1

    Like an idiot, I moderated this one down when I intended to moderate it up. Hope someone else comes by and fixes it. I guess by posting this I will undo the moderation and fix it. :)

  7. Re:wow, I thought the law was supposed to protect on Microsoft's Long-Playing Business Record · · Score: 2, Informative

    Personally, I think they should be able to intregrate whatever features into their operating system whenever they want. When Microsoft uses skullduggery (like funding baseless lawsuits) to inhibit their competition that is absolutely wrong - but there is nothing wrong with adding features. Ever since operating systems were invented features that at first were provided by outside programs have been moving into the operating system - and if they had not installing an operating system on a computer today would be a patchwork nightmare. Also, I don't see many Linux people crying foul when features are bundled with the Linux operating system even though it would tend to reduce the use of other programs that provide those features. Everyone should be allowed to offer whatever software they desire to sell. If Microsoft (or anyone else) wants to offer a software package that will provide all the features of all the programs in existance, that should be their prerogative.

  8. Re:Standards on What Would The World Be Like Without Microsoft? · · Score: 4, Interesting

    In the county where I grew up, (Josephine County, Oregon) we have no building codes. Actually, the county does have building codes but the voters passed a law 30 years or so ago that it was illegal for the county to enforce its building codes so it amounts to the same thing. You see some very interesting buildings in places, especially out in the country, but I can not remember any cases where a building fell down and injured anyone. It can also be very handy, when we decided to remodel our house we just bought building supplies and started building...no permits or anything.

  9. How about I patent the idea of blocking popups? on Prince of Pop-ups · · Score: 1

    Probably already been done, but what if I patent the idea of blocking popups? Then I could sell the patent to this guy and he could go around charging everybody for blocking the popups that he patented. Either way, he would win. This is a joke - if anyone is inclined to take it seriously.

  10. Re:Silly People Don't Realize... on First Human Clone Born? · · Score: 1

    There is a cattle cloning industry now. For a price, Transova Genetics (http://www.transova.com) will supply you with a kit to select cells from your cow and for a somewhat higher price they will do the cloning work for you. The total price is a few tens of thousands of dollars. I could not find any reference to it on their web site, but I am a veterinary student and earlier this year collected a skin sample from a cow for possible cloning at their facility.

  11. Re:What is this? Hoax? No Details? on Perpetual Motion Delorean? · · Score: 1

    The 'facts' that the car requires batteries to go, is supposed to be able to go coast to coast, still have charged batteries and tops off the batteries as it goes along are, by themselves, no claim of perpetial motion. The same thing is true of a gasoline powered car. It just means you have a source of power other than the battery. On the other hand, I do think it is likely to be a hoax. It has all the markings of a hoax with mysterious technology etc. When they try to demonstrate it they, as you would predict, run into mechanical difficulties.