Even in America assimilation happens at 1st generation born in country anyway, it doesn't get much faster than that with forced primary languages so its not really worth the effort.
I don't know about that.
I mean, look at the proliferation of everything lately int he US being printed in spanish as well as English? Look at all the spanish speaking TV and radio channels appearing...?
There do seem to be more and more areas in the US, that are becoming communities unto themselves, with little interaction with the rest of the city they are in, and with everything in dual languages, there's little incentive to learn English and mix faster into the US melting pot.
I remember when I took Spanish in HS and some in College...the only day English was spoken in those classes, was the first day.
After that first day, only spanish was spoken....and well, with that kind of immersion in the classroom, you had to learn pretty damned quick.
Why should this not be the model for the US in general?
I don't like excessive laws, but there much worse things than laws that are philosophically sound but just aren't backed by heavy handed enforcement.
Well, one quick way to at least deter this activity...is to actively prosecute people that are stupid enough to take their vote pictures, and post them on facebook or whatever.
I mean, come'on, this would be slam dunk, with little $$ spent by dist. attys...all they have to do is scan and scrape FB for posts of people in their state showing their votes.
Evidence that is hard to refute.
Start fining them each $1K...and get plenty of publicity on the news (what news agency would NOT carry this?)....
You'd get the majority of people thinking twice about doing this...
We already know where the chips lie as far as which party is willing to block the vote of citizens...
\
What???
You mean the Democrats are once again going to have Black Panther members carrying clubs/pipes outside polling places trying to intimidate voters that might now vote for Obama?
I mean, once previously was enough, but man...doing it a second time and having to have Eric Holder officially 'ignore' it, and refuse to bring charges against said thugs again might be difficult...no?
Electronic voting has the benefit of being able to provide interfaces for the visually impaired, blind, or in multiple languages.
Hmm, I guess different states/counties/parishes have different types of electronic voting systems.
The one here...apparently they have a large sheet of paper that goes over the buttons that light from underneath the paper for each candidate/referendum.
It is electronic in recording the vote, but it in no way helps anyone blind or doesn't speak English....
I'm guessing they allow someone to aid the blind, but I wonder if they allow interpreters in our voting booths here.
From what I'm reading, I'm guessing some states have electronic voting that uses touch screen computer screens?
You see, the US does not have an official language that is used for all government interaction like many other countries have.
This really is a serious problem...and we need to remedy this.
It would encourage quicker assimilation into the greater American culture, if everyone new coming in, has a little more incentive to learn the common language of the country.
It would be a benefit in those coming in, not a detriment or incentive to discriminate.
That's too young to retire. For one he doesn't seem like the guy who wold sit back. He'll be in tech somehow until he dies.
I dunno...if he's smart, he'll realize that if he gets fiscally set up for life, where he no longer has to worry about spending any time the rest of his life 'earning a living'.....he can devote all his time to doing what he likes.
If that includes future tech creation and motivation, what better way to do that full time, than to NOT have to waste time earning a living...?
I love the idea of self-driving cars. I will talk about it with people and frequently, I will get the response "the idea of computers driving scares me". My response: "the idea of humans driving cars scares me more".
Not me...
Frankly, I've never owned anything in my life but two seater sports cars....driving is FUN to me....
Maybe if you bought cars that were solely for utilitarian use, you might find joy in it too?
Every day I fire up the engine and scream out onto the road...it is an adventure for me waiting to happen.
Good for you. Now try doing that when you are the average american.
I do consider myself an average American.
Middle income (maybe slightly on the higher side of Middle Income, if that's what you mean by 'average'.
I do not, however, mind working a bit harder, studying and researching to make as much $$ as I can, and to also find out what to do, to keep as much of my $$ as I can from the tax man, and maximize my savings and retirement.
If that attitude isn't average...well, it should be.
If you take the idea of insurance back to the days of 'major medical'..that it is to be used only for catastrophic needs, rather than every day routine care...you can get it and afford it.
Again, read what I said about doing the HSA to save for routine medical needs pre-tax...combined with a high deductible insuracne policy.
96 is the magic year not because it is more than 15 years old, but because you do not have to pass an OBDII emissions check.
Strange...I've had a couple of cars now newer than '96 ('97 vette, and a 2005 turbo mx5)....and I've never had an odbii check nor any type of emissions check.
Ahh.....nice to live in states that aren't so restrictive about what you want to drive...
Huh. I'm getting old, but the first and last time I had a chance to get a pension was decades ago. A retirement date with a pension is no longer offered at most companies. Given the whipsaw of the economy, I've seen people's lives upended by crashes of their ESOP or 401k's -- so defined-contribution hasn't panned out as promised, either.
Err...the days of having one job for life disappeared decades ago...starting about the early 60's at least.
Today, no company has loyalty to you....you work for yourself. It is up to you to manage your retirement, which isn't a bad thing.
Seeing as how what pensions are still out there in the US...and can't be funded, well, some of those people are going to be SOL, and we're talking govt. pensions, like out in CA.
You gotta be willing to evolve in your work life...constantly learning new things to do as old jobs become commodities. You need to be willing to move to where the jobs are.....to get ahead on the W2 circuit, you need to be jumping jobs to advance every 3-5 years or so.
People need to accept that that old, ideal job way of life is long gone.
If you go by the new paradigm, it isn't that bad.....
I can be as self-employed & personally-incorporated as I like, but that's going to make zero difference if Sanjeet in Bongobongoland will work all week for less than the cost of my morning coffee.
Then, you need to target your skills and continuing growth towards something worth more $$ here in the US than rote coding which has become a commodity in the past decades.
The days of being a code monkey and doing a good living at it are rapidly becoming numbered.
You gotta learn to go with the flow and move to something more profitable.
Cool, so just sell the house you are underwater on, and move your kids to a new school and find your wife another job too. Sounds so easy, doesn't it?
If you had planned well, and not over bought a home...you'd likely not have the sever underwater problems.
As far as moving kids and having the wife work...well, people have been doing that for years. I know growing up I switched schools in different states more than a few times...and once I was in grade school, my Mom went back to work.
Living within your means is the key.
If you decide to marry and have kids, well, you gotta plan and be prepared to make the required sacrifices.
In today's world ( and it has been this way for awhile now), the days of having a job for life are gone, the only way to move forward for money and promotion (if you do the W2 thing only) is to change jobs every few years. You have to be willing to go to where the work is.
With telecommuting...that is a bit easier than in the past..but really, kids are resilient....they can move and change as needed.
Because abusing an individual is easy?
Because you cannot afford your own healthcare unless you support something like single-payer.
Absolutely untrue.
I've incorporated myself..."S" corp. I've worked through it contracting myself out...and have done well with that on gigs.
I'm currently W2 right now, but looking to get back to 1099 gigs.
When doing the indie thing, I factored into my bill rate enough money to take off 3 weeks or so a year (vacation and sick time), enough to put back into retirement, AND...I maxed out my HSA (Health Savings Account), coupled with a high deductible insurance policy ($1200 deductible), to be used only in catastrophic circumstances.
So, I paid for my routine care, monthly meds out of my pre-tax dollars with the HSA. No problem.
Often when I told the Dr I was paying and not insurance, I usually got a discount price. I know for an MRI I had..they knocked 15% off the bill price when I told them I was paying for it with cash. Not a bad deal.
Instead of making HSA's easier to set up and use, the Obamacare laws have reduced the effectiveness of HSA's and made the more trouble to use.
And yes, I have some pre-existing conditions, high triglycerides, and that is a BIG red flag for insurance, but I was still able to get reasonable rates with the set up I described above.
If you are good, and know your worth, you can get it....I bargained for the best I could get on this current W2 gig....
I don't need an union to take my money to do very little for me.
Rather than make laws to strengthen the unions, why not strengthen laws to protect the individual?
But no...you can afford your own healthcare...you can especially do it if you're younger and in good health. I'm not young and I can do it...why can't others? Why not make laws to make it easier for the individual to take care of it themselves?
We have not had a left candidate that I can remember in my life. Surely not in the last decade.
Obama.....
And if he gets re-elected, without constraint of having to fear re-elections, I think he'll lean so much further to the left......that he'll need props to keep him from falling over.
We survived eight years of George W. Bush, you will survive eight years of Barack Obama.
I honestly don't know about that.
Bush pushed the deficit and economy pretty far to the bad side.
Obama has pushed it even further in only 4 years than Bush did in 8...
I think we're so close to the fiscal edge....Obama and his ilk, will easily shove the US over the fiscal edge before his 2nd 4 year term would be over....
Yes..I do think the man is dangerous, and bad for our country.
tho he'd return to the rapid deficit spending increases we saw under bush and reagan based on his policies
Still, even THOSE spending policies...would be better than BHO's....who has spent WAY more than that...in only 4 years (vs. Bush's 8 years).
I was no huge fan of Bush's...but trying to praising Obama as something better....kinda tough to swallow.
I'll take the devil I don't know, over the devil I do know in this case.
I pretty much see Romney as saying what he has to, to try to get elected. I don't honestly think he would do the harm to the economy as Obama has and will continue to do.
Hell at this point, I'd vote for Charlie Sheen for president over Obama....
The law also requires online retailers doing more than $100,000 a year in online sales in Colorado to file with the stateâ(TM)s Department of Revenue each year a list of all online Colorado customers and the dollar value and category of their online purchases.
Every online retailer who sells to a Colorado purchaser and doesnâ(TM)t collect sales tax will be required to put a notice in the customerâ(TM)s invoice that says, "You are obligated to pay sales tax in the state of Colorado for this purchase". The requirement to submit a list of customers and purchasing data each year is intended to support the stateâ(TM)s ability to check compliance with the law.
That's gonna be a little tough to enforce if said online retailer has not physical presence in the state of CO....
Slashdot Mirror
I don't know about that.
I mean, look at the proliferation of everything lately int he US being printed in spanish as well as English? Look at all the spanish speaking TV and radio channels appearing...?
There do seem to be more and more areas in the US, that are becoming communities unto themselves, with little interaction with the rest of the city they are in, and with everything in dual languages, there's little incentive to learn English and mix faster into the US melting pot.
I remember when I took Spanish in HS and some in College...the only day English was spoken in those classes, was the first day.
After that first day, only spanish was spoken....and well, with that kind of immersion in the classroom, you had to learn pretty damned quick.
Why should this not be the model for the US in general?
Well, one quick way to at least deter this activity...is to actively prosecute people that are stupid enough to take their vote pictures, and post them on facebook or whatever.
I mean, come'on, this would be slam dunk, with little $$ spent by dist. attys...all they have to do is scan and scrape FB for posts of people in their state showing their votes.
Evidence that is hard to refute.
Start fining them each $1K...and get plenty of publicity on the news (what news agency would NOT carry this?)....
You'd get the majority of people thinking twice about doing this...
\ What???
You mean the Democrats are once again going to have Black Panther members carrying clubs/pipes outside polling places trying to intimidate voters that might now vote for Obama?
I mean, once previously was enough, but man...doing it a second time and having to have Eric Holder officially 'ignore' it, and refuse to bring charges against said thugs again might be difficult...no?
Hmm, I guess different states/counties/parishes have different types of electronic voting systems.
The one here...apparently they have a large sheet of paper that goes over the buttons that light from underneath the paper for each candidate/referendum.
It is electronic in recording the vote, but it in no way helps anyone blind or doesn't speak English....
I'm guessing they allow someone to aid the blind, but I wonder if they allow interpreters in our voting booths here.
From what I'm reading, I'm guessing some states have electronic voting that uses touch screen computer screens?
This really is a serious problem...and we need to remedy this.
It would encourage quicker assimilation into the greater American culture, if everyone new coming in, has a little more incentive to learn the common language of the country.
It would be a benefit in those coming in, not a detriment or incentive to discriminate.
I dunno...if he's smart, he'll realize that if he gets fiscally set up for life, where he no longer has to worry about spending any time the rest of his life 'earning a living'.....he can devote all his time to doing what he likes.
If that includes future tech creation and motivation, what better way to do that full time, than to NOT have to waste time earning a living...?
Get $5Million clear....invest it in a non-agressive manner, which could still get you like %5 interest annually.
As long as you don't buy leer jets...you could live easily on about $250K a year pretty readily.....
I know I could.
What....the driver crackles and immediately catches on fire if there is a wreck????
Not me...
Frankly, I've never owned anything in my life but two seater sports cars....driving is FUN to me....
Maybe if you bought cars that were solely for utilitarian use, you might find joy in it too?
Every day I fire up the engine and scream out onto the road...it is an adventure for me waiting to happen.
Well, you are on a well known, US centric website....
Take it as an opportunity to learn some US slang...?
You know..if I was to get something with the guts of a Corvette underneath...I think I'd want the exterior to look like one too.
Those caddie's are freakin' FUGLY....
I do consider myself an average American.
Middle income (maybe slightly on the higher side of Middle Income, if that's what you mean by 'average'.
I do not, however, mind working a bit harder, studying and researching to make as much $$ as I can, and to also find out what to do, to keep as much of my $$ as I can from the tax man, and maximize my savings and retirement.
If that attitude isn't average...well, it should be.
If you take the idea of insurance back to the days of 'major medical'..that it is to be used only for catastrophic needs, rather than every day routine care...you can get it and afford it.
Again, read what I said about doing the HSA to save for routine medical needs pre-tax...combined with a high deductible insuracne policy.
Well, they did START out as small businessmen....
I didn't vote for nixon...or really have to deal with his presidency at the time...I was a young, innocent kid...
Strange...I've had a couple of cars now newer than '96 ('97 vette, and a 2005 turbo mx5)....and I've never had an odbii check nor any type of emissions check.
Ahh.....nice to live in states that aren't so restrictive about what you want to drive...
Err...the days of having one job for life disappeared decades ago...starting about the early 60's at least.
Today, no company has loyalty to you....you work for yourself. It is up to you to manage your retirement, which isn't a bad thing.
Seeing as how what pensions are still out there in the US...and can't be funded, well, some of those people are going to be SOL, and we're talking govt. pensions, like out in CA.
You gotta be willing to evolve in your work life...constantly learning new things to do as old jobs become commodities. You need to be willing to move to where the jobs are.....to get ahead on the W2 circuit, you need to be jumping jobs to advance every 3-5 years or so.
People need to accept that that old, ideal job way of life is long gone.
If you go by the new paradigm, it isn't that bad.....
Then, you need to target your skills and continuing growth towards something worth more $$ here in the US than rote coding which has become a commodity in the past decades.
The days of being a code monkey and doing a good living at it are rapidly becoming numbered.
You gotta learn to go with the flow and move to something more profitable.
Strange....the small business has been and still is the backbone of the US economy. It employs most of the people.
The crushing of the small business is what is hurting the economy currently.
If you had planned well, and not over bought a home...you'd likely not have the sever underwater problems.
As far as moving kids and having the wife work...well, people have been doing that for years. I know growing up I switched schools in different states more than a few times...and once I was in grade school, my Mom went back to work.
Living within your means is the key.
If you decide to marry and have kids, well, you gotta plan and be prepared to make the required sacrifices.
In today's world ( and it has been this way for awhile now), the days of having a job for life are gone, the only way to move forward for money and promotion (if you do the W2 thing only) is to change jobs every few years. You have to be willing to go to where the work is.
With telecommuting...that is a bit easier than in the past..but really, kids are resilient....they can move and change as needed.
Absolutely untrue.
I've incorporated myself..."S" corp. I've worked through it contracting myself out...and have done well with that on gigs.
I'm currently W2 right now, but looking to get back to 1099 gigs.
When doing the indie thing, I factored into my bill rate enough money to take off 3 weeks or so a year (vacation and sick time), enough to put back into retirement, AND...I maxed out my HSA (Health Savings Account), coupled with a high deductible insurance policy ($1200 deductible), to be used only in catastrophic circumstances.
So, I paid for my routine care, monthly meds out of my pre-tax dollars with the HSA. No problem.
Often when I told the Dr I was paying and not insurance, I usually got a discount price. I know for an MRI I had..they knocked 15% off the bill price when I told them I was paying for it with cash. Not a bad deal.
Instead of making HSA's easier to set up and use, the Obamacare laws have reduced the effectiveness of HSA's and made the more trouble to use.
And yes, I have some pre-existing conditions, high triglycerides, and that is a BIG red flag for insurance, but I was still able to get reasonable rates with the set up I described above.
If you are good, and know your worth, you can get it....I bargained for the best I could get on this current W2 gig....
I don't need an union to take my money to do very little for me.
Rather than make laws to strengthen the unions, why not strengthen laws to protect the individual?
But no...you can afford your own healthcare...you can especially do it if you're younger and in good health. I'm not young and I can do it...why can't others? Why not make laws to make it easier for the individual to take care of it themselves?
Why don't we try to strengthen laws for individuals....and make things easier for people to self employ, self incorporate and contract themselves.
Let each person be responsible for negotiating their own pay rates, etc.
Make it easier for people to do their own healthcare, and retirement.....have co-ops out there, etc?
Why do we keep going down the path of group-think, and putting everyone into the same bowl and treating everyone the same.
Why not make it easier for people to be in charge of, and manage their own destiny?
Give the individual more rights, and put more teeth in laws protecting the individual....not the unions.
Obama.....
And if he gets re-elected, without constraint of having to fear re-elections, I think he'll lean so much further to the left......that he'll need props to keep him from falling over.
I honestly don't know about that.
Bush pushed the deficit and economy pretty far to the bad side.
Obama has pushed it even further in only 4 years than Bush did in 8...
I think we're so close to the fiscal edge....Obama and his ilk, will easily shove the US over the fiscal edge before his 2nd 4 year term would be over....
Yes..I do think the man is dangerous, and bad for our country.
Still, even THOSE spending policies...would be better than BHO's....who has spent WAY more than that...in only 4 years (vs. Bush's 8 years).
I was no huge fan of Bush's...but trying to praising Obama as something better....kinda tough to swallow.
I'll take the devil I don't know, over the devil I do know in this case.
I pretty much see Romney as saying what he has to, to try to get elected. I don't honestly think he would do the harm to the economy as Obama has and will continue to do.
Hell at this point, I'd vote for Charlie Sheen for president over Obama....
That's gonna be a little tough to enforce if said online retailer has not physical presence in the state of CO....