"The point is, the big picture (1 billion years of earth history) doesn't matter for us."
Surely this disinterest only applies if you don't intend to reproduce?
Actually, one of the things that amazes me about modern humans, is that they do seem remarkably disinterested in their own survival into the future.
Its as if they think that the species ends with them or something. Very wierd. Very... counter-Nietzscheian, counter-survivalist. Self destructive.
My point was that someone else played down natural sources of climactic change and I don't believe that this is justified given the scaling of disaster levels involved.
Its like someone says 'oh we are producing *far* more noxious gasses than mere volcanos' which needs to be moderated by noting how *huge* 'mere' vulcanism can get.
"Sulphourous-emissions of volcanoes and all other natural sources are surpassed by 330%."
Sure, now.
But volcanic activity is nothing if not variable; the Earth goes through periods of intense vulcanism; vast areas covered in lava. Check out what caused the Deccan Traps in India for one example.
Massive volcanos which we today think of as just large islands with a few volcanos scattered around like North Island New Zealand where lake Taupo is a *crater* lake; the whole island is (probably) one gigantic monoclastic volcano.
Sure, *today* and for the duration of human history we have outdone all of the volcanos of the world, but take in the big picture.
All it would take is just *one* of those massive events and nature will have accelerated past us in greenhouse (and other noxious) gas production.
I didn't need a movie (which I havn't seen) to realise the implications of desalinating the North Atlantic ocean.
In fact, I was reading about this scenario years ago and, when you look at the facts involved (and don't just assume that its hollywood bullshit) its actually bloody obvious.
"Yes, but there doesn't have to be just one group that controls the media."
In fact their isn't in most of the 'democratic' world and I believe that what we might be witnessing is a covert war being waged between these conflicting powers.
"Control the media and you can control the minds of your subjects. To have a truly free thinking society means that the media cannot be controlled."
Not even by corporations nor by shareholders nor managing directors.
The reason that I believe that democracy cannot properly function in modern 'media-rich' societies is exactly this; who controls the media controls, among other things, *voting*behaviors* (I believe that human beings are extremely amenable to suggestion).
Any media coverage of political matters risks being used as a tool to control voting behaviors.
I like the *idea* of democracy but I fail to see how this sort of problem can be circumvented at all.
In fact, I have a nice little inductive argument. It goes something like this;
I have no reason to believe that my father was any less intelligent, nor more stupid than me.
And he has no reason to believe that his father was any less intelligent nor more stupid than he.
In fact, I have no reason to believe that for any of my ancestors, n, n is less intelligent than his immediate predecessor, n-1.
Therefore, all of my ancestors, all the way back to the primordial slime, were as intelligent as me.
:)
(I have a degree in formal logic so if anyone has any smartarse comments about the fallaciousness of that argument, blow it out your arse. I know already).
That way if anything goes wrong $AVERAGE_US_VOTER will imagine someone *elses* country getting a mushroom cloud. And it sometimes seems to me that this would give it a huge popularity boost in the USA.
(Did someone see a troll in that? Move along, nothing to see here).
One 'jammer' that I've often wondered "why the hell don't people in riot situations use these especially when the cops start with the teargas" is spraycans of black paint directed at their clear plastic shields and visors.
oops, pigs vision is obscured, he must choose; teargas or blackness.
I'd have thought that the next thing that these 'rioters' should get (in game) is experiencing what happens to people who riot in ancient Egypt and why its a bad idea.
Unfortunately, even if this sort of thing does get into full VR, I imagine there will be safeguards so that they could disconnect if it got too... real.
Slashdot Mirror
"in Iowa, where I participated in this election"
I was looking at the results map and it looks to me as if the Iowa and New Mexico votes didn't even count. Is that true?
surely it would be less misleading to call it the 'u sap at riot' act?
(disclaimer; I read that one in someone elses comment on slashdot some time ago in a whole nother article).
I mean its haloween so somehow arn't the costumes supposed to represent something scary?
Or am I missing something and lots of people in this persons neighborhood work for the RIAA?
"The point is, the big picture (1 billion years of earth history) doesn't matter for us."
Surely this disinterest only applies if you don't intend to reproduce?
Actually, one of the things that amazes me about modern humans, is that they do seem remarkably disinterested in their own survival into the future.
Its as if they think that the species ends with them or something. Very wierd. Very... counter-Nietzscheian, counter-survivalist. Self destructive.
My point was that someone else played down natural sources of climactic change and I don't believe that this is justified given the scaling of disaster levels involved.
Its like someone says 'oh we are producing *far* more noxious gasses than mere volcanos' which needs to be moderated by noting how *huge* 'mere' vulcanism can get.
"Sulphourous-emissions of volcanoes and all other natural sources are surpassed by 330%."
Sure, now.
But volcanic activity is nothing if not variable; the Earth goes through periods of intense vulcanism; vast areas covered in lava. Check out what caused the Deccan Traps in India for one example.
Massive volcanos which we today think of as just large islands with a few volcanos scattered around like North Island New Zealand where lake Taupo is a *crater* lake; the whole island is (probably) one gigantic monoclastic volcano.
Sure, *today* and for the duration of human history we have outdone all of the volcanos of the world, but take in the big picture.
All it would take is just *one* of those massive events and nature will have accelerated past us in greenhouse (and other noxious) gas production.
I didn't need a movie (which I havn't seen) to realise the implications of desalinating the North Atlantic ocean.
In fact, I was reading about this scenario years ago and, when you look at the facts involved (and don't just assume that its hollywood bullshit) its actually bloody obvious.
"Titan is believed to be heated by gravitation stress from Jupiter, if not from the magnetic field as well. There could also be natural fission."
like a tiny little brown dwarf...
The only reason I would go to the USA would be to help in the next revolution.
And that wouldn't look good on a visa application...
"Yes, but there doesn't have to be just one group that controls the media."
In fact their isn't in most of the 'democratic' world and I believe that what we might be witnessing is a covert war being waged between these conflicting powers.
Actually, as a pansapienist, I really do believe the conclusion of the argument.
:)
I just happen to think that the argument itself is a nice quasi-metaphorical story that gesticulates in the right direction.
"Control the media and you can control the minds of your subjects. To have a truly free thinking society means that the media cannot be controlled."
Not even by corporations nor by shareholders nor managing directors.
The reason that I believe that democracy cannot properly function in modern 'media-rich' societies is exactly this; who controls the media controls, among other things, *voting*behaviors* (I believe that human beings are extremely amenable to suggestion).
Any media coverage of political matters risks being used as a tool to control voting behaviors.
I like the *idea* of democracy but I fail to see how this sort of problem can be circumvented at all.
"She's Unattractive, dowdy, downright ugly even! ie: She's jealous. Ugly girls always hate the pretty ones."
Oh I don't know...
Just because she doesn't have any facial metalwear or bolts through her face...
I agree.
:)
In fact, I have a nice little inductive argument. It goes something like this;
I have no reason to believe that my father was any less intelligent, nor more stupid than me.
And he has no reason to believe that his father was any less intelligent nor more stupid than he.
In fact, I have no reason to believe that for any of my ancestors, n, n is less intelligent than his immediate predecessor, n-1.
Therefore, all of my ancestors, all the way back to the primordial slime, were as intelligent as me.
(I have a degree in formal logic so if anyone has any smartarse comments about the fallaciousness of that argument, blow it out your arse. I know already).
that people will be threatened for saying that they *like* a product!
WTF?
Time to move the Vogon constructor fleet into place, wipe this one out and start again.
Good point. Maybe it is.
I've even seen an ISP silently dropping any PGP signed or encrypted email.
In the case of the encrypted email, it wasn't even a mime attachment; just ASCII armored inline.
The ISP in question even tried to charge for 'fixing' it when we spotted what was happening, though at first they tried to totally deny it.
"They prosecute people who illegally grow their GE corn/etc."
They also prosecute people who *accidentally* grow their GE plants.
No, dude, you *outsource* the launch facility.
That way if anything goes wrong $AVERAGE_US_VOTER will imagine someone *elses* country getting a mushroom cloud. And it sometimes seems to me that this would give it a huge popularity boost in the USA.
(Did someone see a troll in that? Move along, nothing to see here).
yeah naturally.
My feeling was its non lethal so no karma for me.
Maybe if it wasn't a spray can but bags of black paint thrown so as to paint bomb them...
And if you made sure it was a paint that could be cleaned off later then you wouldn't even be 'damaging police property'
"I thought you wanted to avoid chaos?"
Who, me?
I don't know what gave you that idea.
One 'jammer' that I've often wondered "why the hell don't people in riot situations use these especially when the cops start with the teargas" is spraycans of black paint directed at their clear plastic shields and visors.
oops, pigs vision is obscured, he must choose; teargas or blackness.
"They just want the patent holders to be companies that can be pushed around by the content providers."
Like Microsoft, for example.
I'd have thought that the next thing that these 'rioters' should get (in game) is experiencing what happens to people who riot in ancient Egypt and why its a bad idea.
Unfortunately, even if this sort of thing does get into full VR, I imagine there will be safeguards so that they could disconnect if it got too... real.
"I'd drink the water."
Its Singapore; if you don't, if people don't then it will just be mandated by law if necessary. And then people will.
"an article in Journal of the American College of Nutrition"
You put your finger right on it.