Geez, why would anyone want to voluntarily GIVE google your phone number?
I mean....i know they have tons on everyone, but I try not to voluntarily give them any info I don't have to, especially don't like to confirm my phone number to them.
What they should do...is pass some version of the Fair or Flat tax type deal.
I know...you make exceptions so you don't tax necessities of life (food, medicine, etc)....but after that, everyone has skin in the game, it is a fixed fair rate, and then you don't need a CPA, you fill in the post card.
You made X? You pay Y.
Easy peasy...no need for 3rd parties at all.
Hell, you could likely come up with almost no corporate tax, or very little (simple rates)...and you'd have businesses flowing into the US as a benefit offering more jobs.
Then again, it would be simple and easy and efficient.....so, at the same time, I think I"ll wish for a pony too.
I am SOOOOO glad I grew up in the days before cell phones and cameras everywhere.
I would not have had as much fun or experienced so much as a kid growing up if I"d been surveyed constantly like they are today.
Hell, if I were raised like they are today, I guess I"d have been taken away from my parents by protective services (I did play and run all over neighborhoods un-supervised for most any given day).....and likely my antics would have landed me likely on some terrorist watch list.
That and when I sit around with old friends, we trade stories of mischief we got into....thankfully no photo documentation of it to haunt our adult lives, but we do all remember and laugh about it over drinks from time to time.
I'll definitely trade my independence and ability to run all over the place unsupervised, and to spend genuine time in meatspace with friends I am still close with over these past decades, over the higher tech today....where you see kids on a date out heads bent over phones rather than interacting with each other, getting to know each other, etc.
Sure, growing up as I did...I failed, I fucked up...I got caught occasionally, but I lived and learned through it.
ON the other hand, I did have a film camera back in the day, and when it was out....I did make sure to keep all the negatives, if by chance anyone I grew up with becomes a senator or runs for president...so that I can a good job/compensation for keeping said negatives private.
In order to change this dependence on questionable sources AND keep oil as a fuel around Europe would have to do what the US does, make acquisitions through war.
[ROLLS EYES]
Hmm, I'm still trying to find all that new oil supply pouring into the US from what wars in the middle east, or anywhere for that reason.
Where again did we overtake and steak claim to bring oil into the US from our recent wars?
it's well understood that changing jobs too often looks bad on a resume. Or at least, it did before lots of people started doing that, don't even know if it's that bad these days...
Depends on what your definition of "too often" is. I mean, pretty much for the past 25-30 years at least, the only real way to increase your salary and position was the change jobs. Sure, you don't want to be doing it every year, but every 2-3 years, sure.
At least if you are a W2 employee.
...the bad thing about a system like social credit codifying rules, is that the rules that affect your score probably change a lot more slowly than socially accepted behavior.
This is kind of analogous to the marijuana laws in the US, I mean, the polled majority of US citizen want to see it legalized, or at least taken off the Federal Schedule I level, yet, you can't see any real movement yet by Federal congress critters to enact this change.
That's why you have to be ever vigilant and scrutinize every new law, or Federal/State program, because once it is enacted, it is damned hard to ever get rid of it....
Wasn't there like a telephone fee, that was still around linked to the Spanish-American war that was only rescinded like a decade or so ago?
"...or companies would be forced to keep only what information is required to complete a transaction, then dispose of it once that transaction is completed. yeah marketing would take a hit, but that's probably a net benefit to society.
How would returning something work? The company would no longer have any evidence you purchased it from them.
Well, this would take a LOT of thought to do as a law, but it could be moderated by allowing info to be kept as gathered, in say..financial transactions, etc...where you do need records. BUT, stipulate it cannot be shared, distributed or SOLD outside of that company unless the person in question was asked and consented to it. Basically guarantee that wherever their data is gathered and kept, within a company for a specific reason....is kept there and doesn't go anywhere else for any reason that is not specifically granted.
And there should be no EULA's that blanket cover them when first gathering it. The EULA"s should be forced to be very specific for reason and what is kept, how long, etc.
Sure, is a PITA....but hey, something of this nature works fairly well for medical information HIPAA.
I should think something at least in that nature for ALL personal data could work.
...like maybe pass laws in the US, that stipulate that the individual citizens' data belongs to THEM and that they must opt IN in order for companies to collect and use in any manner, their data?
Roll it up in online and maybe expanded individual privacy rights? The right to be forgotten? Banning shadows accounts (facebook) on people that never even joined your system/applicaiton/social media...?
Now something like that might actually be healthy and helpful to the average US citizen....
Well, in the posts I was replying to....the complaint was that gays didn't get the legal rights heteros do in marriage....and a civil union contract fulfills that, doesn't it?
The post I was answering alluded to THAT being the important thing in all this....eh?
Waiting for people to die doesn't help either. See gun control.
OH please....the gun control measure being brough up now do virtually nothing but stop or hinder law abiding US gun owners that are of no threat to anyone.
If they were serious, they'd go after in full force the main source of gun deaths in the US...gang members using handguns, that are illegally obtained (ie stolen).
But no, they're going after semi-automatic rifles that are rarely used in gun violence deaths, I think last study was maybe 400/yr?
The gun control measures they're screaming about now largely are ineffective and the previous "assault weapons ban" did little to curb things (remember Columbine was during the first ban)...and once the ban was lifted, the crime rate due to semi-auto rifles, like the AR-15 never rose.
And to clarify...the US public does NOT have ready access to "Assault Weapons"...those are fully automatic fire select weapons. The AR-15 and other commonly possessed and used rifles in the US are semi-automatic, one bullet fired per trigger actuation, rather than fully automatic where the gun keeps firing with one trigger pull and doesn't stop till you either release the trigger or run out of ammo.
If you're going to scream for more gun control, at least do it with an educated insight as to what actually might help.
Honestly, I wouldn't be nearly so mad at the anti-vaxxers if they were only hurting themselves. Unfortunately, since they are helping to spread contagious diseases, they're not.
But, aren't the anti-vaxxers mostly spreading it to each other, and therefore taking themselves out of the 'pool' so to speak?
"RAPIDPASS systems are exhaust emissions analyzers similar to those used in traditional emissions inspection stations, but adapted for drive-through testing.
Wow..that's wild.
Where I live, they don't even do emissions testing on annual car inspections, and other states I've lived in, don't even do annual inspections.
There are civil union contracts available out there for such folks....why not use them, same benefit, right?
To me, "marriage" is a religious thing...and the govt. really doesn't need to be in that business. They should leave the marriage part to churches....and for legal contracts, everyone should use civil contracts....
By that token - shouldn't the person entering your country learn the language?
Yes, they should, that's part of my complaint.
Showing a proficiency in English is a requirement for citizenship in the US.
And in most other countries, like Mexico...aside from some heavily tourist cities, they don't print everything in multiple languages, you need to learn the language of those lands in order to do anything there.
I see, so learning foreign languages, which would make it easier for U.S. companies to compete with foreign companies, is now something to be avoided. Hello Mr. Foot, you won't mind if I shoot your ass off, will you? Yeah, I know it is connected to me but I'm too stupid to care.
There's nothing wrong with learning other languages, I think it is a good think if you have the time and interest.
But I don't think it should start to feel necessary to learn a foreign language just so you will be able to easily and ready understand things being spoken and written in your OWN country.
And in the US, English has been the common language pretty much since inception.
We should have made it the official US language by law long ago...but until recently, it wasn't thought to be needed, since everyone coming here used to generally try hard to learn English, and melted their cultures into the greater US culture.
Somewhere in recent history, that has been lost...
Slashdot Mirror
I mean....i know they have tons on everyone, but I try not to voluntarily give them any info I don't have to, especially don't like to confirm my phone number to them.
That's what I do as a 1099 contractor....
I know...you make exceptions so you don't tax necessities of life (food, medicine, etc)....but after that, everyone has skin in the game, it is a fixed fair rate, and then you don't need a CPA, you fill in the post card.
You made X? You pay Y.
Easy peasy...no need for 3rd parties at all.
Hell, you could likely come up with almost no corporate tax, or very little (simple rates)...and you'd have businesses flowing into the US as a benefit offering more jobs.
Then again, it would be simple and easy and efficient.....so, at the same time, I think I"ll wish for a pony too.
Too late.....unfortunately.
I would not have had as much fun or experienced so much as a kid growing up if I"d been surveyed constantly like they are today.
Hell, if I were raised like they are today, I guess I"d have been taken away from my parents by protective services (I did play and run all over neighborhoods un-supervised for most any given day).....and likely my antics would have landed me likely on some terrorist watch list.
That and when I sit around with old friends, we trade stories of mischief we got into....thankfully no photo documentation of it to haunt our adult lives, but we do all remember and laugh about it over drinks from time to time.
I'll definitely trade my independence and ability to run all over the place unsupervised, and to spend genuine time in meatspace with friends I am still close with over these past decades, over the higher tech today....where you see kids on a date out heads bent over phones rather than interacting with each other, getting to know each other, etc.
Sure, growing up as I did...I failed, I fucked up...I got caught occasionally, but I lived and learned through it.
ON the other hand, I did have a film camera back in the day, and when it was out....I did make sure to keep all the negatives, if by chance anyone I grew up with becomes a senator or runs for president...so that I can a good job/compensation for keeping said negatives private.
[ROLLS EYES]
Hmm, I'm still trying to find all that new oil supply pouring into the US from what wars in the middle east, or anywhere for that reason.
Where again did we overtake and steak claim to bring oil into the US from our recent wars?
Yeah, I can't think of any either.
How about they change and allow the user FULL control over what updates they do or do not want?
Not to worry!!
The "Green New Deal" has provisions to basically gut and rebuild all buildings in the US to be energy saving, etc.
I'm sure they'll also consider they have to be rebuilt to more readily allow WiFi signals to pass through the new high tech walls.
Depends on what your definition of "too often" is. I mean, pretty much for the past 25-30 years at least, the only real way to increase your salary and position was the change jobs. Sure, you don't want to be doing it every year, but every 2-3 years, sure.
At least if you are a W2 employee.
This is kind of analogous to the marijuana laws in the US, I mean, the polled majority of US citizen want to see it legalized, or at least taken off the Federal Schedule I level, yet, you can't see any real movement yet by Federal congress critters to enact this change.
That's why you have to be ever vigilant and scrutinize every new law, or Federal/State program, because once it is enacted, it is damned hard to ever get rid of it....
Wasn't there like a telephone fee, that was still around linked to the Spanish-American war that was only rescinded like a decade or so ago?
Shit like that just hangs around forever.
I've yet to see a "smart" TV yet, that had apps on it with any sort of response time and interface yet that can rival a separate player.
They are PAINFULLY slow to work with....
Well, this would take a LOT of thought to do as a law, but it could be moderated by allowing info to be kept as gathered, in say..financial transactions, etc...where you do need records. BUT, stipulate it cannot be shared, distributed or SOLD outside of that company unless the person in question was asked and consented to it. Basically guarantee that wherever their data is gathered and kept, within a company for a specific reason....is kept there and doesn't go anywhere else for any reason that is not specifically granted.
And there should be no EULA's that blanket cover them when first gathering it. The EULA"s should be forced to be very specific for reason and what is kept, how long, etc.
Sure, is a PITA....but hey, something of this nature works fairly well for medical information HIPAA.
I should think something at least in that nature for ALL personal data could work.
Roll it up in online and maybe expanded individual privacy rights? The right to be forgotten? Banning shadows accounts (facebook) on people that never even joined your system/applicaiton/social media...?
Now something like that might actually be healthy and helpful to the average US citizen....
I hope to fuck this isn't going to be implemented into the PRIME programming I get from Amazon with my Prime account.....that will be a NO GO for me.
The post I was answering alluded to THAT being the important thing in all this....eh?
OH please....the gun control measure being brough up now do virtually nothing but stop or hinder law abiding US gun owners that are of no threat to anyone.
If they were serious, they'd go after in full force the main source of gun deaths in the US...gang members using handguns, that are illegally obtained (ie stolen).
But no, they're going after semi-automatic rifles that are rarely used in gun violence deaths, I think last study was maybe 400/yr?
Read this interesting article from NY Times....
The gun control measures they're screaming about now largely are ineffective and the previous "assault weapons ban" did little to curb things (remember Columbine was during the first ban)...and once the ban was lifted, the crime rate due to semi-auto rifles, like the AR-15 never rose.
And to clarify...the US public does NOT have ready access to "Assault Weapons"...those are fully automatic fire select weapons. The AR-15 and other commonly possessed and used rifles in the US are semi-automatic, one bullet fired per trigger actuation, rather than fully automatic where the gun keeps firing with one trigger pull and doesn't stop till you either release the trigger or run out of ammo.
If you're going to scream for more gun control, at least do it with an educated insight as to what actually might help.
But, aren't the anti-vaxxers mostly spreading it to each other, and therefore taking themselves out of the 'pool' so to speak?
Wow..that's wild.
Where I live, they don't even do emissions testing on annual car inspections, and other states I've lived in, don't even do annual inspections.
Interesting the differences between states.....
D'oh!!!
To me, "marriage" is a religious thing...and the govt. really doesn't need to be in that business. They should leave the marriage part to churches....and for legal contracts, everyone should use civil contracts....
Seems like that should clear it up....
Hmm..from the article, I'm wondering, do they also want to watch out for "alt-LEFT" video bloggers too?
Yes, they should, that's part of my complaint.
Showing a proficiency in English is a requirement for citizenship in the US.
And in most other countries, like Mexico...aside from some heavily tourist cities, they don't print everything in multiple languages, you need to learn the language of those lands in order to do anything there.
And areas like those two very small, niche and outlier examples do not represent the larger US.
What I was concerned about, was this is happening outside of those areas more and more in the general US.
Only a few places like NYC and SF have those types of those very specialized areas.
There's nothing wrong with learning other languages, I think it is a good think if you have the time and interest.
But I don't think it should start to feel necessary to learn a foreign language just so you will be able to easily and ready understand things being spoken and written in your OWN country.
And in the US, English has been the common language pretty much since inception.
We should have made it the official US language by law long ago...but until recently, it wasn't thought to be needed, since everyone coming here used to generally try hard to learn English, and melted their cultures into the greater US culture.
Somewhere in recent history, that has been lost...
This one.