Sounds like a nice idea, but people hold on to handrails. You need to have some type of handrails overhead that's short enough for everyone but not too short to be inconvenient for tall people.
But wouldn't legislation allow people and/or corporations to sue spammers and claim money for lost resources? Wouldn't being able to sue companies for hiring spammers reduce the likelihood of spammers emailing US residents?
I agree that techonology and education are the main ways to win the spam war, but that doesn't mean that legislation doesn't have a role to play.
Have you read anything else by Thomas Friedman? I dont agree with everything Friedman says, but if you're going to post his view, might as well as be fair to him. Here's his last paragraph:
"None of this means we, America, just have to do what the world wants, but we do have to take it seriously, and we do have to be good listeners. We, America, "have to work even harder to build bridges," argues Mr. Wright, because info-tech, left to its own devices, will make it so much easier for small groups to build their own little island kingdoms. And their island kingdoms, which may not seem important or potent now, will be able to touch us more, not less."
(emphasis mine)
He's not talking about taking control over the techonology. It's the fact that it can't be controlled by any single source that means we MUST communicate and have dialogue with others in the world. We must know their side and they should know ours. He's saying that American cannot be isolationists nor try to impose their will on everyone because others using this techonology will get stronger too. He beleived that war in Iraq was the right thing to do, but he also said that only if it's used to set up democracies in the middle east. That we must use the techonology to spread information and encourage democracy.
I agree that this statement was disappointing. And while I hate the RIAA and its practices and think they are slanting statistics with their views on sales and so forth, how do we know what would be the case if ebooks became popular and they didn't have DRM? How do we know they wouldn't be copied to the computers and shared over P2P and the sales be much lower?
I agree that quality and fair price are the key factors, including economic downturn and boycotts of the RIAA for lowering music sales. But obviously, P2P has also had quite a role. Sure, one can buy the book and take it to a copying machine and then return the book. But that has costs in time and money. Downloading music is much easier if you're only interested in those top artists. The Harry Potter book sales only strengthens the RIAA case in my opinion.
Summing it up well would have been an analysis of the current politics surrounding the DMCA and other copyright laws, then possibly offering a solution to this major disagreement that both sides of the issue could live with.
I agree that the article didn't sum the situation well, but I don't think offering a solution that's agreeable to all sides may be possible nor desired. I'm reminded of when someone told me of the mother that brought a cake home for her two kids. One kid said they should share 50-50, the other kid wanted all of it. The mother, being "wise" came up with a compromise, 75-25.
Some compromises may be necessary. But I think the RIAA and MPAA are being more greedy than reasonable. Laws should be based upon morals and reason (and obviously some degree of pragmatics). I don't give a damn if they can't keep their empire if it takes for them to buy laws and for us to ignore reason. Some compromises shouldn't be given and the public should give them a solution they have to deal with.
Not meant toward the parent, but I hate it when people complain about sequels. Sometimes sequels makes sense (LOTR Trilogy) and sometimes people want to see them (Matrix, X-Men). As others have said, you can have derivative work and still be original. Sometimes, derivative work can be better (and not just in some tweaks and roster updates as they used to do for sports games).
The problem isn't a sequel. It's the human mindset to be safe (as businesses do the "sure bet" of following some formula, and consumers do the "sure bet" of following hype by friends and media). Consumers don't buy/play an orginal game because it's sound weird though the gameplay might be great. They don't buy games that don't get as much press.
I loved Civ2 (never played Civ) and I really looked forward to Civ3. They added some cool things (culture), but I was mostly disappointed. It's a good game, but followed the "sure bet" mindset unfortunately. Then they came out with an expansion pack and now another one for the fall. But that's just because they know it'll sell. There's probably a game that tackles this same subject (play as a civ to conquer the world) but in a different way that I haven't heard about. Now, should I spend $50 on that new game which I might not like or $50 on a possible Civ4 which I believe would be at least better than Civ3?
Paying money for nothing but a *recording* of music? What a silly concept.
Yes, the better concept would be to hire talented musicians and have them around so they can play any type of music when you want to hear it. Seriously, why would I want just a *recording*?
My opinion (for what it's worth and based upon reading others opinions on slashdot) is that RIAA does not have any competition among the companies. Yes, each CD is different and the price for the commodity is hard to measure. But the RIAA fixes prices and abuse their oligopoly and I don't know if they own the IP rights or whether I should respect whatever rights they hold.
RIAA stresses music for mass appeal which tends to be people 15-25 who are the most likely to rebel and contend against authority. So, the young people pirate, older people aren't interested in the music the RIAA mostly advertise and many are just fed up with the RIAA.
The RIAA didn't adapt to changing technology and it's their own actions and decisions which led to their declining sales (which only are compounded by the economic downturn). I don't give a damn for the RIAA and hope for their downfall.
in the first version of the program, they noticed an error when co-workers in the company starting screaming from their cubicles.
Seriously though, if I was a hacker, I'd program some things like the freeze or delete mp3 files programs and blame the RIAA. who would believe the RIAA's denials?
Except for the fact that Gentoo is really only for "advanced users", it fits the bill pretty well. By forcing you to manually install everything you want, it cuts WAY down on bloat.
I don't think the person was commenting on bloat, but confusion. More choice causes most people to be confused on topics they're not familiar with or may feel uneasy about. Some people don't want more choices.
I don't want to have to decide between 5 guys to fix my car. I don't know who to trust or what I'm getting into. I value competition and choice, but I'd take the advice of a trusted knowledgable friend and go to the mechanic they do.
Likewise, the distro is the trusted friend. They choose the best software and an intuitive GUI. Choice is offered in "advanced view" only when the person feels comfortable. Otherwise, the user is just happy using software that works. Choice is a hassle in those circumstances.
I want to install Linux on my Dell Inspiron 4150 laptop and keep the internal wireless card and everything else working. I don't know what Linux distro to try. For my desktop, I like Mandrake. I've heard about problems with laptops and too much choice is now a hassle. So I've held off and when school is out, I'll read different reviews and try different distros.
I think you slight the progress made, the difficulty of the task and overgeneralize on the AI community (on purposes and approaches of various people). You also have a clarity on "intelligence" which tends not to be so clear.
But I'd like to bring to your attention a research project going on at my school (Michigan State University) which I think is different from other "AI". I didn't see it mentioned from glancing the article.
The attempt to is create a robot that learns and develops as a baby would. A key point is that it develops its own representation of the world. I disagree on some issues with the professor, but I think he has the right general idea.
Here's a link to slides explaining the approach and another link to the main research page.
I pride myself on my honesty and don't steal, rob, rape, pillage or murder.
People say, at least you have your health. Well, there are multiple types of health (physical, financial, emotional, mental, etc). Just because you don't physically hurt someone or deprive them of physical property doesn't mean you haven't done something wrong.
Sure, causing trouble for nameless people is always easier for most people. Who cares if you ruins someone's credit, or cause hassle for them, the company's workers, etc. Who cares if your actions led to people losing reputation, getting fired or whatever. At least you didn't punch them!
If someone beats me up, but it's not severe, so I just have bruises and so forth, I would much prefer that to someone erasing my hard drive, ruining my credit, or etc. Certain amount of pain is more tolerable than certain financial loss, or loss of time or mental agony over other things. Why people can't put themselves in other people's situation and act better is beyond me. And you want me to hire someone like that? Please.
And you think the system actual performs the job of reforming criminals? You're willing to stake your business on it? If sex offenders were convicted and are free, you may be willing to risk your children's welfare, but I wouldn't be. Until the system does more than punishment, I can't assume them to have reformed.
It's the fact that I can't post my email address without being obsure to current programs that mine them from websites, or that I can't post a simple mailto on a homepage.
It's the fact that I don't want to see *unsolicited* pictures of people having sex sent to me.
It's the fact that if I want to reduce the amount of emails I delete, I risk using software that might delete legitimate email. If I don't use the software, I then the *inconvenience* tremendously increases.
What the spammers are doing should be legally wrong and they should be held accountable. If there isn't current law that holds them accountable and they can't be punished, then I'm all in favor of well crafted legislation that deals with this *important* issue.
My friend was telling me about when he worked for Polaroid in Mexico in the early 90's and someone mentioned email. He said, what's the use of this email? He was used to calling people and so forth. Times have changed. Email is the primary mode of communication among many friends, family and possibly even businesses. We should hold people that hire spammers and the spammers themselves financially accountable, then maybe we'll make progress.
As a result, companies that do business primarly in the US can be very skiddish about their public relations vis a vis human rights like that, almost to a fault.
But notice the key terms, Public Relations. The people aren't different, their motive is still greed and making money. Some do what they can get away with. On issues of human rights, China seems to be at 1900 US level and it's a shame. But I do think they'll improve throughout time as the US has.
Consider that Hong Kong was British for longer than Puerto Rico was American.
Hong Kong *reunited* with China. Puerto Rico is supposed to reunite with which country? My roommate, who is Mexican, told me that there was a survey among hispanics along the border US-Mexico Border and that many there felt that the land should be owned by Mexico. We were both shocked, but some people cling on to things like that. I don't think the Chinese as a group are inherently any different. I'm not saying it's right.
"All groups of people are equally stupid."
So you're as stupid as the original poster? Or are you going to try to throw all sorts of stipulations into that statement now?
Maybe I am, in some subject or another. But I'm wasn't referring to any individuals. I could have said all groups (race, ethnicity, sex, nationality,...) of humans have equal potential and capability in terms of intelligence. But I don't think too highly of human intelligence, so "equally stupid" works for me.
You sure don't have any problems with lumping all us "God damn patriotic Americans" all in one boat, however. You know, the ones you sarcasticly referred to as "kind-heard and naive folks." You seemed OK with putting all Arabs under one classification as well. Perhaps you really are "equally stupid" as the original poster.
You conveniently twist words too boost your argument. I have lived in the US almost my whole life, so I have nothing against Americans (being pseudo-American myself). But that comment of mine was my frustration at people using patriotism to shut opponents out politically. About people who call themselves patriots but forget that the ideals of the US are what we're supposed to defend, not the damn flag. But that's more off-topic than this discussion.
I disagree with a lot of people and there are times they're wrong and there are times that I'm wrong (I'm also not the best at expressing myself). I have no problem arguing with whomever, but I don't want to say that person is representative of the group. I do think many Americans are kind-hearted and naive. But there is enough bad apples here as there are in China. I don't want to over generalize without enough evidence.
Reading newspapers (both Arab and others), one can see that there is a growing Arab pride and unity. It's obvious that there is plenty of disagrements amongst the group too. There is probably more Anti-US unity than anything else. But that's a separate topic. I'm not claiming all (or even a majority of) Arabs feel this unity, I'm just noticing that it's being mentioned a lot, by both Arab and foreign press.
I do want to say that I think the fact that China continues to dominate Tibet is very saddening to me. I think the passive-resistence by the Dalai Lama is commendable, but shows that one has to really pay attention to how much one values peace compared to other values, such as freedom.
seriously. The guy talks about how "different" the Chinese are and then talks about guys taking advantage of situations to become wealthy. Oh, that never happens in this ethical capitalisitic society! In capitalism, man exploits man, in communism, it's the other way around!
What the fuck is wrong with the mods! Damn! How can someone say "Chinese have no ethics" and be called "informative" and not "flamebait"?!
Yes, there are some differences between the core of the cultures and values of China, US, India, Eastern Europe, Middle East, etc. But somehow, "those" guys lack ethics, but people here are superior. what bullshit!
So Chinese in Hong Kong rather unite with China then be with Britain or independent, so what?! How is Chinese pride so different from Arab pride, religious pride or the ridiculous god damn amount of "patriotism" in the US? Where we can't question the president in the time of war without being labeled traitor by these "kind-hearted and naive" folks. Patriotism, nationalism, sexism, racism, etc. are all stupid in my opinion. All groups of people are equally stupid.
It's one thing to demonize the Chinese government. But quite another to insult the race and culture of all Chinese people.
You are further evidence of western arrogance and ignorance people talk about. But I won't make the assumptions that such a stereotype is valid nor will I prejudge other westerners on it.
Tell me, what's the value of literacy? Why is writing considered important? I thought it was because it was the best way to accurately store information from one generation to the next. Also, with printing presses, it's easier to pass along to others in larger quantities.
I can't see written language going away anytime soon, but if we have technology that can preserve and pass on information better, what the hell is the problem of using it to it's full extent?
If I can be in the Kitchen and cook and completely control the computer through voice interaction (open browser, go to slashdot, tell me the headlines, read article from link, etc..) and not be forced to be in from of a monitor, that's a bad thing?
If NLP advances and machines can translate languages and to speech synthesis better and I can listen to Russian stories without learning Russian, that's a bad thing?
If my family on the other side of the world (yes, people move around more, especially for education) cant find time to communicate because of different schedules but they can leave video messages for me, that's a bad thing?
If kids that can't read yet can interact with the computer to learn to read or gain knowledge because of a good GUI, that's a bad thing?
Maybe I missed the point of your post. Maybe you need to learn that not all change is bad.
Maybe it can't. Personally, I'm not opposed to a National card. However, I do think keeping track of foreigners is important and to do so, each one needs identification. Having many overstays who work illegally is not good. I have plenty of family that have overstayed (tourists and student visas) and are working illegally. They both deprive their native country of talent and lower wage standards in the U.S. Probably, they would prefer to be here illegally than risk having a different system where they would not be here. But I think overall, it's in the best interests of students and visitors (as well as the US and other nations) for the US to have a defined and strong system instead of an ineffective and chaotic INS system.
I have a Dell Inspiron 4150. While you're correct that at 1.7GHz, it doesn't get the best battery life, but with Speedstep, I easily get three hours with one battery. It mostly runs at 1.2 Ghz and can vary from 867Mhz to 1.7ghz.
I can listen to winamp, download and install software, work in xemacs, compile in cygwin bash or do latex, browse slashdot on mozilla and so forth and get three hours. I can watch divx movies by themselves (I haven't had the player going and do something else on the laptap at the same time) and watch the whole movie. Is DVD that much more power consuming? (I don't know)
Well, natives have something called a birth certificate. They can also get social security cards. They stopped issuing them for foreigners and they get different types of cards.
The government has not wanted to overview or spy on the public. This is understandable. But this has led to the millions of overstays. Without changing policies and enforcing them, millions more will come and overstay.
This doesn't solve any problem but it can be part of the solution.
There are over 10 million illegal aliens in the U.S. Most of them are overstays. The government needs to check on foreigners every now and then to see if they're still legal. They didn't use to and still dont, that's why you have so many now. If they don't, the people will find a way to survive here illegally.
So what can the government do to/for the 10 million aliens? Many of which are hard working individuals that pay taxes. If the govenment gives Amnesty, then that only encourages more people to overstay or cross the border illegally.
Also, as long as there is that great a economic disparity between Mexico and the United States, Mexicans will continue to find ways to come here. Unless the US puts up a wall, they'll keep sneaking in. There were talks of giving Mexicans identification cards so they could work, open bank accounts, etc. in the U.S. Talks were progressing well until 9-11. President Vicente Fox and the Mexicans are happy with Bush right now.
First, the government should issue these cards to all foreigners and keep a tab on them. They've put the laws in the books, we'll see how well they enforce it. They also need to cooperate with Mexico. The IRS, INS and FBI need to combine databases properly. They can check for terrorists, watch flow of money, make sure to illegals are working, etc. Then, after a few years with better situation in the border of Mexico and having the foreigner issue better handled, they should give amnesty to the illegal aliens already here that haven't committed felonies. Give them proper papers to start their process of becoming permanent residents.
Unfortunately, that'll still be too late for me. I still find it odd that though I've been here 17 years (age 23) and I can't get my legal status fixed while some lucky bastard can win a lottery and get a green card to the U.S. The final thing they need to do is clarify the laws so that people can know how to stay in-status and all that. I've gone to several immigration lawyers and specialists and that disagree or aren't sure about things.
So if people disagree with you, they're kowtowing to propaganda, but if they agree with you, then they're smart, thinking individuals? Have you considered that you could've fallen to propaganda while the other side are smart thinking individuals?
In reality, it's not a binary situation. Iraq has deceived the U.N. for over a decade. They do have chemical and biological weapons. The degree of cooperation with Al Queda and progress of nuclear weapons is debatable. One extreme wants to go to war as quickly as possible and remove Saddam and install American leadership. Another extreme wants to avoid war at all costs and will let Saddam get away with anything.
Most are inbetween. They know there is compelling evidence, but not sure if it's enough to start war now or if all the options have been tried. However, most know that unless Saddam truely cooperates, containment from nuclear weapons will not work. North Korea is close or already has them and the Clinton Administration had a framework to prevent that. Saddam is more ruthless and not as desperate for aid as the North Koreans. How much effort and how many deceptions are the Germans, French and others willing to put up with before they also say, okay, Saddam, you've had enough chances?
I don't like Bush and disagree with most of his policies. I don't know if war is called for right now and enough options have been covered. But each passing day, Saddam continues to defy the world and the world just takes it. The U.N. is supposed to prevent that too.
This is exactly the problem, so far as I know. Whenever I've seen an app, I pick it up instantly. Easy to hack stuff, read help, etc. The interface is mostly intuitive because the programmers designed a lot of things like I would. Not always, but at least I can reason it out. The "clueless" "end-user" just thinks fundamentally different. For whatever reason, they can't figure it out. Just as I can't hear the difference between tones or pick up a dance step or whatever. So, even if I design things I think have a good interface and is intuitive and so forth, many of those out there still don't get it.
I think part of the problem is fear or lack of real desire to learn in or something pyschological that prohibits them from picking it up quickly. But there is a fundamental difference and that has created a divived between those that can and those that cannot.
That's great for you. And I know they're talking about their desktop line, but I bought a laptop from Dell that arrived in January. It had a bios problem that had an update on the website in November but they didn't fix it when they shipped it to me. I didn't buy a floppy with the laptop just a DVD/CDRW. However, they only offer an executable that copies stuff to a floppy. I emailed tech support and they said I had to send in the motherboard (the only option they gave me), they couldn't give me an iso or anything. The floppy option was $20 add-on with the laptop, but a new one cost $90 if you don't buy it with the laptop. Great! Maybe they should change they're current bios updates to ISOs and stuff and get things up to date before they decide to get rid of floppy drives.
I haven't even read the article. I'm just pissed with Dell./end rant
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Sounds like a nice idea, but people hold on to handrails. You need to have some type of handrails overhead that's short enough for everyone but not too short to be inconvenient for tall people.
(About) Everybody "wants peace". They just want it on their own terms and are willing to die (or kill) for it.
But wouldn't legislation allow people and/or corporations to sue spammers and claim money for lost resources? Wouldn't being able to sue companies for hiring spammers reduce the likelihood of spammers emailing US residents?
I agree that techonology and education are the main ways to win the spam war, but that doesn't mean that legislation doesn't have a role to play.
"None of this means we, America, just have to do what the world wants, but we do have to take it seriously, and we do have to be good listeners. We, America, "have to work even harder to build bridges," argues Mr. Wright, because info-tech, left to its own devices, will make it so much easier for small groups to build their own little island kingdoms. And their island kingdoms, which may not seem important or potent now, will be able to touch us more, not less."
(emphasis mine) He's not talking about taking control over the techonology. It's the fact that it can't be controlled by any single source that means we MUST communicate and have dialogue with others in the world. We must know their side and they should know ours. He's saying that American cannot be isolationists nor try to impose their will on everyone because others using this techonology will get stronger too. He beleived that war in Iraq was the right thing to do, but he also said that only if it's used to set up democracies in the middle east. That we must use the techonology to spread information and encourage democracy.I agree that this statement was disappointing. And while I hate the RIAA and its practices and think they are slanting statistics with their views on sales and so forth, how do we know what would be the case if ebooks became popular and they didn't have DRM? How do we know they wouldn't be copied to the computers and shared over P2P and the sales be much lower?
I agree that quality and fair price are the key factors, including economic downturn and boycotts of the RIAA for lowering music sales. But obviously, P2P has also had quite a role. Sure, one can buy the book and take it to a copying machine and then return the book. But that has costs in time and money. Downloading music is much easier if you're only interested in those top artists. The Harry Potter book sales only strengthens the RIAA case in my opinion.
I agree that the article didn't sum the situation well, but I don't think offering a solution that's agreeable to all sides may be possible nor desired. I'm reminded of when someone told me of the mother that brought a cake home for her two kids. One kid said they should share 50-50, the other kid wanted all of it. The mother, being "wise" came up with a compromise, 75-25.
Some compromises may be necessary. But I think the RIAA and MPAA are being more greedy than reasonable. Laws should be based upon morals and reason (and obviously some degree of pragmatics). I don't give a damn if they can't keep their empire if it takes for them to buy laws and for us to ignore reason. Some compromises shouldn't be given and the public should give them a solution they have to deal with.
Not meant toward the parent, but I hate it when people complain about sequels. Sometimes sequels makes sense (LOTR Trilogy) and sometimes people want to see them (Matrix, X-Men). As others have said, you can have derivative work and still be original. Sometimes, derivative work can be better (and not just in some tweaks and roster updates as they used to do for sports games).
The problem isn't a sequel. It's the human mindset to be safe (as businesses do the "sure bet" of following some formula, and consumers do the "sure bet" of following hype by friends and media). Consumers don't buy/play an orginal game because it's sound weird though the gameplay might be great. They don't buy games that don't get as much press.
I loved Civ2 (never played Civ) and I really looked forward to Civ3. They added some cool things (culture), but I was mostly disappointed. It's a good game, but followed the "sure bet" mindset unfortunately. Then they came out with an expansion pack and now another one for the fall. But that's just because they know it'll sell. There's probably a game that tackles this same subject (play as a civ to conquer the world) but in a different way that I haven't heard about. Now, should I spend $50 on that new game which I might not like or $50 on a possible Civ4 which I believe would be at least better than Civ3?
Yes, the better concept would be to hire talented musicians and have them around so they can play any type of music when you want to hear it. Seriously, why would I want just a *recording*?
My opinion (for what it's worth and based upon reading others opinions on slashdot) is that RIAA does not have any competition among the companies. Yes, each CD is different and the price for the commodity is hard to measure. But the RIAA fixes prices and abuse their oligopoly and I don't know if they own the IP rights or whether I should respect whatever rights they hold.
RIAA stresses music for mass appeal which tends to be people 15-25 who are the most likely to rebel and contend against authority. So, the young people pirate, older people aren't interested in the music the RIAA mostly advertise and many are just fed up with the RIAA.
The RIAA didn't adapt to changing technology and it's their own actions and decisions which led to their declining sales (which only are compounded by the economic downturn). I don't give a damn for the RIAA and hope for their downfall.
in the first version of the program, they noticed an error when co-workers in the company starting screaming from their cubicles.
Seriously though, if I was a hacker, I'd program some things like the freeze or delete mp3 files programs and blame the RIAA. who would believe the RIAA's denials?
I don't think the person was commenting on bloat, but confusion. More choice causes most people to be confused on topics they're not familiar with or may feel uneasy about. Some people don't want more choices.
I don't want to have to decide between 5 guys to fix my car. I don't know who to trust or what I'm getting into. I value competition and choice, but I'd take the advice of a trusted knowledgable friend and go to the mechanic they do.
Likewise, the distro is the trusted friend. They choose the best software and an intuitive GUI. Choice is offered in "advanced view" only when the person feels comfortable. Otherwise, the user is just happy using software that works. Choice is a hassle in those circumstances.
I want to install Linux on my Dell Inspiron 4150 laptop and keep the internal wireless card and everything else working. I don't know what Linux distro to try. For my desktop, I like Mandrake. I've heard about problems with laptops and too much choice is now a hassle. So I've held off and when school is out, I'll read different reviews and try different distros.
But I'd like to bring to your attention a research project going on at my school (Michigan State University) which I think is different from other "AI". I didn't see it mentioned from glancing the article.
The attempt to is create a robot that learns and develops as a baby would. A key point is that it develops its own representation of the world. I disagree on some issues with the professor, but I think he has the right general idea.
Here's a link to slides explaining the approach and another link to the main research page.
You have got to be kidding me. AOL users are using Debian now? Any geek status gain from learning Linux and using Mandrake is all gone now :(
People say, at least you have your health. Well, there are multiple types of health (physical, financial, emotional, mental, etc). Just because you don't physically hurt someone or deprive them of physical property doesn't mean you haven't done something wrong.
Sure, causing trouble for nameless people is always easier for most people. Who cares if you ruins someone's credit, or cause hassle for them, the company's workers, etc. Who cares if your actions led to people losing reputation, getting fired or whatever. At least you didn't punch them!
If someone beats me up, but it's not severe, so I just have bruises and so forth, I would much prefer that to someone erasing my hard drive, ruining my credit, or etc. Certain amount of pain is more tolerable than certain financial loss, or loss of time or mental agony over other things. Why people can't put themselves in other people's situation and act better is beyond me. And you want me to hire someone like that? Please.
And you think the system actual performs the job of reforming criminals? You're willing to stake your business on it? If sex offenders were convicted and are free, you may be willing to risk your children's welfare, but I wouldn't be. Until the system does more than punishment, I can't assume them to have reformed.
It's not simply deleting emails (spam).
It's the fact that I can't post my email address without being obsure to current programs that mine them from websites, or that I can't post a simple mailto on a homepage.
It's the fact that I don't want to see *unsolicited* pictures of people having sex sent to me.
It's the fact that if I want to reduce the amount of emails I delete, I risk using software that might delete legitimate email. If I don't use the software, I then the *inconvenience* tremendously increases.
What the spammers are doing should be legally wrong and they should be held accountable. If there isn't current law that holds them accountable and they can't be punished, then I'm all in favor of well crafted legislation that deals with this *important* issue.
My friend was telling me about when he worked for Polaroid in Mexico in the early 90's and someone mentioned email. He said, what's the use of this email? He was used to calling people and so forth. Times have changed. Email is the primary mode of communication among many friends, family and possibly even businesses. We should hold people that hire spammers and the spammers themselves financially accountable, then maybe we'll make progress.
But notice the key terms, Public Relations. The people aren't different, their motive is still greed and making money. Some do what they can get away with. On issues of human rights, China seems to be at 1900 US level and it's a shame. But I do think they'll improve throughout time as the US has.
Consider that Hong Kong was British for longer than Puerto Rico was American.
Hong Kong *reunited* with China. Puerto Rico is supposed to reunite with which country? My roommate, who is Mexican, told me that there was a survey among hispanics along the border US-Mexico Border and that many there felt that the land should be owned by Mexico. We were both shocked, but some people cling on to things like that. I don't think the Chinese as a group are inherently any different. I'm not saying it's right.
"All groups of people are equally stupid."
So you're as stupid as the original poster? Or are you going to try to throw all sorts of stipulations into that statement now?
Maybe I am, in some subject or another. But I'm wasn't referring to any individuals. I could have said all groups (race, ethnicity, sex, nationality, ...) of humans have equal potential and capability in terms of intelligence. But I don't think too highly of human intelligence, so "equally stupid" works for me.
You sure don't have any problems with lumping all us "God damn patriotic Americans" all in one boat, however. You know, the ones you sarcasticly referred to as "kind-heard and naive folks." You seemed OK with putting all Arabs under one classification as well. Perhaps you really are "equally stupid" as the original poster.
You conveniently twist words too boost your argument. I have lived in the US almost my whole life, so I have nothing against Americans (being pseudo-American myself). But that comment of mine was my frustration at people using patriotism to shut opponents out politically. About people who call themselves patriots but forget that the ideals of the US are what we're supposed to defend, not the damn flag. But that's more off-topic than this discussion.
I disagree with a lot of people and there are times they're wrong and there are times that I'm wrong (I'm also not the best at expressing myself). I have no problem arguing with whomever, but I don't want to say that person is representative of the group. I do think many Americans are kind-hearted and naive. But there is enough bad apples here as there are in China. I don't want to over generalize without enough evidence.
Reading newspapers (both Arab and others), one can see that there is a growing Arab pride and unity. It's obvious that there is plenty of disagrements amongst the group too. There is probably more Anti-US unity than anything else. But that's a separate topic. I'm not claiming all (or even a majority of) Arabs feel this unity, I'm just noticing that it's being mentioned a lot, by both Arab and foreign press.
I do want to say that I think the fact that China continues to dominate Tibet is very saddening to me. I think the passive-resistence by the Dalai Lama is commendable, but shows that one has to really pay attention to how much one values peace compared to other values, such as freedom.
I could go on, but that's enough...
seriously. The guy talks about how "different" the Chinese are and then talks about guys taking advantage of situations to become wealthy. Oh, that never happens in this ethical capitalisitic society! In capitalism, man exploits man, in communism, it's the other way around!
What the fuck is wrong with the mods! Damn! How can someone say "Chinese have no ethics" and be called "informative" and not "flamebait"?!
Yes, there are some differences between the core of the cultures and values of China, US, India, Eastern Europe, Middle East, etc. But somehow, "those" guys lack ethics, but people here are superior. what bullshit!
So Chinese in Hong Kong rather unite with China then be with Britain or independent, so what?! How is Chinese pride so different from Arab pride, religious pride or the ridiculous god damn amount of "patriotism" in the US? Where we can't question the president in the time of war without being labeled traitor by these "kind-hearted and naive" folks. Patriotism, nationalism, sexism, racism, etc. are all stupid in my opinion. All groups of people are equally stupid.
It's one thing to demonize the Chinese government. But quite another to insult the race and culture of all Chinese people.
You are further evidence of western arrogance and ignorance people talk about. But I won't make the assumptions that such a stereotype is valid nor will I prejudge other westerners on it.
Tell me, what's the value of literacy? Why is writing considered important? I thought it was because it was the best way to accurately store information from one generation to the next. Also, with printing presses, it's easier to pass along to others in larger quantities.
I can't see written language going away anytime soon, but if we have technology that can preserve and pass on information better, what the hell is the problem of using it to it's full extent?
If I can be in the Kitchen and cook and completely control the computer through voice interaction (open browser, go to slashdot, tell me the headlines, read article from link, etc..) and not be forced to be in from of a monitor, that's a bad thing?
If NLP advances and machines can translate languages and to speech synthesis better and I can listen to Russian stories without learning Russian, that's a bad thing?
If my family on the other side of the world (yes, people move around more, especially for education) cant find time to communicate because of different schedules but they can leave video messages for me, that's a bad thing?
If kids that can't read yet can interact with the computer to learn to read or gain knowledge because of a good GUI, that's a bad thing?
Maybe I missed the point of your post. Maybe you need to learn that not all change is bad.
Maybe it can't. Personally, I'm not opposed to a National card. However, I do think keeping track of foreigners is important and to do so, each one needs identification. Having many overstays who work illegally is not good. I have plenty of family that have overstayed (tourists and student visas) and are working illegally. They both deprive their native country of talent and lower wage standards in the U.S. Probably, they would prefer to be here illegally than risk having a different system where they would not be here. But I think overall, it's in the best interests of students and visitors (as well as the US and other nations) for the US to have a defined and strong system instead of an ineffective and chaotic INS system.
I have a Dell Inspiron 4150. While you're correct that at 1.7GHz, it doesn't get the best battery life, but with Speedstep, I easily get three hours with one battery. It mostly runs at 1.2 Ghz and can vary from 867Mhz to 1.7ghz.
I can listen to winamp, download and install software, work in xemacs, compile in cygwin bash or do latex, browse slashdot on mozilla and so forth and get three hours. I can watch divx movies by themselves (I haven't had the player going and do something else on the laptap at the same time) and watch the whole movie. Is DVD that much more power consuming? (I don't know)
Well, natives have something called a birth certificate. They can also get social security cards. They stopped issuing them for foreigners and they get different types of cards.
The government has not wanted to overview or spy on the public. This is understandable. But this has led to the millions of overstays. Without changing policies and enforcing them, millions more will come and overstay.
This doesn't solve any problem but it can be part of the solution.
There are over 10 million illegal aliens in the U.S. Most of them are overstays. The government needs to check on foreigners every now and then to see if they're still legal. They didn't use to and still dont, that's why you have so many now. If they don't, the people will find a way to survive here illegally.
So what can the government do to/for the 10 million aliens? Many of which are hard working individuals that pay taxes. If the govenment gives Amnesty, then that only encourages more people to overstay or cross the border illegally.
Also, as long as there is that great a economic disparity between Mexico and the United States, Mexicans will continue to find ways to come here. Unless the US puts up a wall, they'll keep sneaking in. There were talks of giving Mexicans identification cards so they could work, open bank accounts, etc. in the U.S. Talks were progressing well until 9-11. President Vicente Fox and the Mexicans are happy with Bush right now.
First, the government should issue these cards to all foreigners and keep a tab on them. They've put the laws in the books, we'll see how well they enforce it. They also need to cooperate with Mexico. The IRS, INS and FBI need to combine databases properly. They can check for terrorists, watch flow of money, make sure to illegals are working, etc. Then, after a few years with better situation in the border of Mexico and having the foreigner issue better handled, they should give amnesty to the illegal aliens already here that haven't committed felonies. Give them proper papers to start their process of becoming permanent residents.
Unfortunately, that'll still be too late for me. I still find it odd that though I've been here 17 years (age 23) and I can't get my legal status fixed while some lucky bastard can win a lottery and get a green card to the U.S. The final thing they need to do is clarify the laws so that people can know how to stay in-status and all that. I've gone to several immigration lawyers and specialists and that disagree or aren't sure about things.
So if people disagree with you, they're kowtowing to propaganda, but if they agree with you, then they're smart, thinking individuals? Have you considered that you could've fallen to propaganda while the other side are smart thinking individuals?
In reality, it's not a binary situation. Iraq has deceived the U.N. for over a decade. They do have chemical and biological weapons. The degree of cooperation with Al Queda and progress of nuclear weapons is debatable. One extreme wants to go to war as quickly as possible and remove Saddam and install American leadership. Another extreme wants to avoid war at all costs and will let Saddam get away with anything.
Most are inbetween. They know there is compelling evidence, but not sure if it's enough to start war now or if all the options have been tried. However, most know that unless Saddam truely cooperates, containment from nuclear weapons will not work. North Korea is close or already has them and the Clinton Administration had a framework to prevent that. Saddam is more ruthless and not as desperate for aid as the North Koreans. How much effort and how many deceptions are the Germans, French and others willing to put up with before they also say, okay, Saddam, you've had enough chances?
I don't like Bush and disagree with most of his policies. I don't know if war is called for right now and enough options have been covered. But each passing day, Saddam continues to defy the world and the world just takes it. The U.N. is supposed to prevent that too.
This is exactly the problem, so far as I know. Whenever I've seen an app, I pick it up instantly. Easy to hack stuff, read help, etc. The interface is mostly intuitive because the programmers designed a lot of things like I would. Not always, but at least I can reason it out. The "clueless" "end-user" just thinks fundamentally different. For whatever reason, they can't figure it out. Just as I can't hear the difference between tones or pick up a dance step or whatever. So, even if I design things I think have a good interface and is intuitive and so forth, many of those out there still don't get it.
I think part of the problem is fear or lack of real desire to learn in or something pyschological that prohibits them from picking it up quickly. But there is a fundamental difference and that has created a divived between those that can and those that cannot.
That's great for you. And I know they're talking about their desktop line, but I bought a laptop from Dell that arrived in January. It had a bios problem that had an update on the website in November but they didn't fix it when they shipped it to me. I didn't buy a floppy with the laptop just a DVD/CDRW. However, they only offer an executable that copies stuff to a floppy. I emailed tech support and they said I had to send in the motherboard (the only option they gave me), they couldn't give me an iso or anything. The floppy option was $20 add-on with the laptop, but a new one cost $90 if you don't buy it with the laptop. Great! Maybe they should change they're current bios updates to ISOs and stuff and get things up to date before they decide to get rid of floppy drives.
/end rant
I haven't even read the article. I'm just pissed with Dell.