"If we legalize Mary Jane and Nose Candy now, the "hip, with it" people will move to something else that is way too dangerous to be legal (crystal meth, anyone?). That will create a lucrative market for it."
Maybe it's me, but, I never thought anyone really did booze or drugs to be 'cool', they did it to feel good and party?
I'm sure 'some' people and kids do it just to be cool doing something illegal and getting away with it, but, I can't believe that the majority of people do it just to be 'cool'.
Unless things have changed radically from when I was a kid...people got high because it felt good and made things more fun....
"Even so, if you buy a handset outright from a third party it'll come unlocked, and I've never heard of any of the telcos refusing a phone on their network which you didn't buy from them. I'm with 3 and bought a new phone to replace my N73 (the contract I got that on doesn't expire until September or so) - just put the SIM from my old phone in my new one and it works fine. Better in fact, since my new phone supports HSDPA. This phone isn't actually carried by 3 at all and I suppose is technically not supported by them as a result, but they don't do anything to prevent you using your own phone if you want to."
Not all phones and networks in the US have 'sim' cards. Only ATT and Tmobile I think, use phones that use 'sim' cards.
I've been with Sprint all my cellphone life, and until a couple years ago, I'd never even heard of a sim card, or the ability to take phones from one network to another.
I'd been very happy with Sprint till last few years. Their reception/signal has gotten abysmal, especially since I moved back to New Orleans proper (been living all around it for past 4 years). I guess they never quite recovered from Katrina maybe.
"The Troll rating of your post is proof positive that/. mods have no sense of humor."
I think occasionally, a bunch of militant, politically correct, over sensitive gay guys get mod points, and mod anything down even remotely negative to gays.
I guess that pretty much negates having a sense of humor about most things...
"Of course for the price of that laptop you just ditched you could probably have bought a lot of $0.99 tracks on iTunes and saved yourself the hassle;)"
"When the laws specifically stipulate the printed word, and given that the internet is not printed, libels laws do not cover the internet in most states I've seen."
I don't get it...if the words/characters weren't PRINTED on the screen, then you'd not be able to read them..?
You can also print them from your computer onto dead tree....would the potential for that not translate into it being 'printed' if accessible via computers?
"What's libelous or slanderous about calling someone gay? No mature adult should be judging people based on beliefs about their sexuality, so being accused of being gay should be no different from being accused of being vegetarian, or Christian, or any other characteristic that is not immediately obvious to the observer and is largely irrelevant to anyone other than the person in question and his/her close acquaintances.
Oh, wait, I was forgetting that the USA is still stuck in the Victorian era with regard to human sexuality."
"Methinks that definition was made before email was around."
So, there was no written word before email??
:)
They did have the equivalent of paper and pen back then. I think the printing press was in use near about then too when they wrote the laws on slander.
"The US has a long tradition of individualism, which is great. Other countries, like my native Canada, have a tradition of mixing individualism with collectivism. Or what you would call a large overbearing nanny state. Obviously, you think collectivism is wrong for the US, but do you also think it is wrong for every other country on earth? Honest question."
Of course I have NO problem with how other countries want to live...if they want a nanny state, have fun.
I, and hopefully still majority of us in the US, do not want such a government.
But really, why would I care what another country does society wise?
Actually, YES. Personally, I think it is one of the funniest shows to come on tv in years. I'm actually surprised at how popular it is (I think it just got picked up for like 2-3 more seasons) because I figured the humor and references would go over most peoples' heads.
"Poverty in the US means not eating, no shelter and no healthcare;"
In the US, no one HAS to go hungry, or without shelter....there are charity (private, city and faith based) services that the homeless can go to. We actually had them refusing to go to these here in New Orleans, some of them are plain crazy...and just prefer to live on the street. But, if you really need it, shelter and food can be found. There are food banks that people donate to, so that those without can eat. Not everything has to be govt. based.
And, no one with an emergency will be turned away from a hospital. It is against the law to be refused tx at an ER.
You paint a far worse picture of the US than it is here. Trust me on this, 'cause I live in one of the poorest towns around, and it isn't that bad here as you paint it, not by a long shot.
While there are exceptions and outliers in every nation, and every system, I just have to emphasize, it is NOT that bad here as you try to spin it.
"You have astronomical crime rates, still allow the state to murder criminals and allow poverty at a level not tolerated by the rest of the western world. Everybody that returns from visiting the US have said the same thing to me - the most enduring impression they had was that of extreme poverty with homeless people sick and dying in the street while others drive by in cars the size of small apartments. It certainly turned me off visiting there i can tell you."
Not sure where you're getting your information man. Yes, some states do allow capitol punishment, personally, I don't have a problem with that. If some asshole is proven with a great amount of overwhelming evidence that he did something horrible, like raping, torturing and killing a kid, I would personally set up to volunteer to put a bullet in his head. But, that's another topic.
But, you speak of some kind of rampant poverty over here? Where in the hell did you get that?!??! Even our people in the US version of 'poverty' have it heads and tails better than what true poverty is in the rest of the world. I live in what is a VERY poor city, New Orleans, and while you do see some street people, you do NOT see people sick and dying in the streets. This isn't somewhere impoverished like Africa, or having people poor in the streets like India, which is what you are making it sound like. Truth be known, there isn't poverty here in the US like what real poverty is in the rest of the world. Does everyone here live in a mansion or own a home, no. But, you certainly have a chance in life here to get the things you want out of life. Equal opportunity != equal results, but, even the worst here in the US have it better than most of the world.
Again, I don't have anything against helping people who have fallen (through no fault of their own) on hard times, nor the elderly, nor the people who can't work due to illness, physical injury, etc. I don't, however, have any sympathy for those who are able bodied, and CAN work...but, choose not to.
And, while the economic problem here is bad...on our scale in the US of what is good and bad...it isn't THAT bad. We'll pull through it soon enough, just have to let the market correct itself, get housing prices back to normal, get people out of homes they shouldn't have been in in the first place, and get the credit market back to normal.
But, really.....can you give specific examples in the US where you have seen sick and dying people in the streets with cars driving by them???
"but I'll take DRM and p2p stupidity over bloody oil wars and dreams of empire any day"
Yeah, those wars for oil, and creating a larger empire sure are working well, aren't they? Nice to see we have now annexed some Middle Eastern property for the US, and now have complete control over the oil flowing in Iraq.
Wait? What?...that's not the case? Hm....but, I thought the war was about....
"But some people don't have the ability/aptitude to even make enough to subsist. "
Life is tough, always has been. In the past, people's families took care of the problems, not society as a whole. Again, if someone is infirmed, retarted, etc...or elderly and not able to work, I don't mind something to help them. But, if you can work, you work. No exceptions.
"And you also have to realise that VERY few people receiving welfare do it for extended periods of time if they don't have to. Welfare provides enough for basic needs like food and shelter (and we have a public health system), it isn't the conditions that many people will endure for long."
Well, your welfare must be much different than ours here in the US. You can go look at the projects (public housing) here in New Orleans where I live, and you can see not just a family living on the dole for a long time, but, entire generations of people living in them on welfare. They never get off!! They get welfare, and free medical care (medicare or medicade I forget which one), they get food stamps, etc. These people have generations of families that are on the taxpayer tit. Why should I support them? They need to get out of the vicious cycle of ignorance and laziness that this type of subsidized life encourages. I'd have much less problem with social programs like these if they were, in fact limited. YOu get 'x' amount of time on it....and hard deadline you are off on your own again. I think that is the only way people will learn.
"About 90% of the wealth is owned by 10% of the population (or thereabouts); it's right and proper that they should relinquish some of that money they have hoarded to support the population that they have exploited with their greed."
This was the main point I noticed in your last post. I just want to know...why am I having to relinquish my money, I certainly have not hoarded a great, vast amount. I've certainly not exploited anyone that I know of with my greed. And yet...."I" the middle class taxpayer am paying the vast majority of the way for these social entitlements.
By your reasoning, if I'm not wealthy, and not exploiting people, I should not have to pay, yet that is the way it is.
"True. However, with the daytrader fad and most people being fairly untrained in terms of retirement financing 10 years ago, how many of your average joes knew that?
A few years ago when privatized social security was being discussed, where do you think most people would've told you their money would be invested? In the stock market, of course. And the media's treatment of it all didn't educate people on leaning towards fixed income/safe return investments for those approaching retirement age."
Since when did it happen that we accepted that being a stupid, uninformed person was the norm, and that we should not only cater to the lowest common denominator, but, protect them from themselves???
It seems that for some reason now, "Average Joe" == Brainless Idiot unable to make own adult decisions for life and future.
"Long term investing is nice and all, but if you heavily invested 10 years ago with the idea of retiring soon...you are back where you started (in fact, you likely are worse off due to the value of stock being much below what you would've paid for it between 03-late 07). The article talks about someone who started investing nearly 40 years ago; a great idea, but that doesn't apply to the majority of the unwashed. "
As I mentioned in another post...part of this plan is PLANNING. As you start getting closer and closer to retirement age, you start moving from riskier stocks to more steady money areas like bonds and treasury notes...etc. Stuff with very little risk.
If you've done things right, the current corrections and drops in the market should not really affect you that much.
Sure things are down, but, there ARE always jobs out there, just may not be ones you 'want'. Like you mentioned, PhD cab drivers...yes, it sucks, but, you gotta do what you can to put meat on the table. When things pick up, you can move back up to a better job.
Also, I think people need a mentality change. Job for life at a company has NOT been around for a long time, yet many people cling to that idea/ideal. Also, we are now in a very mobile society. Putting down roots for life, is possibly a thing of the past. You have to move to where the jobs are, or at least be willing to relocate, or if you can't sell your house....travel,and get on the road. Long commutes,, contracting gigs...etc.
When times are tough...you have to be willing to do what it takes. But much of your proposition was that if jobs go from your area, you are sunk. To me that tells me one thing...MOVE to a different area where there are jobs for your skillset. Is it pleasant? No...but, you gotta do what you gotta do. There are jobs to be had out there, but, my may have to move from NYC to GA or somewhere...and learn a different lifestyle.
"And that would be fine if you had a long term choice of when to retire."
If you do the smart thing, and think long term, this would not hurt you much either.
YOu start investing young, as you start to close in on retirement age, you start moving money from the more risky stocks to safer things, like maybe bonds, etc.
If you are a few years from retirement, you should not have all your money in very volatile stocks, that's just common sense.
Yes, you DO have a choice of when to retire. Anyone that can do simple math knows when they'll hit retirement age, and they should plan accordingly.
You do realize this puts a bit of responsibility on the individual, right? Nothing to be scared of....
"Australia actually. Over here we have always had a "look after the underdog" mentality and don't think it's right to throw people to the wolves simply because they didn't have the ability to get rich."
But I'm not arguing that everyone has to get rich or perish. Just work hard, and live within your means. That means you don't spend on luxuries (HDTV, cable, fine cars, good booze) till you've bought groceries, and put back money for retirement and general savings. The problem is, that largely people have come to expect the govt. to fund their retirment and take care of all the basics, while they go spend their money on 'fun' stuff as mentioned above. If they stayed at home and cooked...they'd not have the weight problems, and they'd save money, etc.
"In fact I know lots of musicians and artists that did their best work while on the dole (unemployment benefits) and enriched us all. I also know several people on welfare that do great charity work."
I love artists and what they do...I applaud people for doing charity work. However, I don't feel it is my place to work hard, bust my ass to earn money, and then turn around and hand it over to people that are sitting around, doing 'fun' stuff like art and music. Hell, if I could be supported, I'd learn to play the guitar or paint or take more time to enjoy my writing. Unless you are good enough to sell your stuff, that is a HOBBY, it is not a livelyhood. Many charities hire people to work for them...no need to be on the 'dole' when you can work for a charity doing good deeds.
Again, no...not saying you have to get rich. But I don't believe in supporting people to have an easy life. I don't mind giving to the elderly, and the infirmed that cannot work. But, anyone that can work....should.
"Did his analysis include the stock market dropping in value by 50%?"
You have to look at the investing in the market long term. Sure, there are fluctuations, and corrections. But over the long haul...so far, it makes money. Sure, if it drops 50% right now...there are some losses, but, it will go back up. And at a loss today, you still have a market that is higher than it was decades ago when you started.
If the market were to totally fail, and collapse....trust me, there would be no government money to put into programs like SS. We'd have many more problems to worry about if the whole thing fails.
Maybe I'm over optimistic, but, I think things will start to improve in the near future. I personally am wanting to try to start buying stocks now...while there are bargains to be had.
Slashdot Mirror
Maybe it's me, but, I never thought anyone really did booze or drugs to be 'cool', they did it to feel good and party?
I'm sure 'some' people and kids do it just to be cool doing something illegal and getting away with it, but, I can't believe that the majority of people do it just to be 'cool'.
Unless things have changed radically from when I was a kid...people got high because it felt good and made things more fun....
Not all phones and networks in the US have 'sim' cards. Only ATT and Tmobile I think, use phones that use 'sim' cards.
I've been with Sprint all my cellphone life, and until a couple years ago, I'd never even heard of a sim card, or the ability to take phones from one network to another.
I'd been very happy with Sprint till last few years. Their reception/signal has gotten abysmal, especially since I moved back to New Orleans proper (been living all around it for past 4 years). I guess they never quite recovered from Katrina maybe.
I think occasionally, a bunch of militant, politically correct, over sensitive gay guys get mod points, and mod anything down even remotely negative to gays.
I guess that pretty much negates having a sense of humor about most things...
I dunno, you can get laptops dirt cheap on eBay
I don't get it...if the words/characters weren't PRINTED on the screen, then you'd not be able to read them..?
You can also print them from your computer onto dead tree....would the potential for that not translate into it being 'printed' if accessible via computers?
Oh, wait, I was forgetting that the USA is still stuck in the Victorian era with regard to human sexuality."
Hahah...oh man, that was so gay!!
Well, if he tries a suicide blast to your ass, you'll know for sure.
So, there was no written word before email??
They did have the equivalent of paper and pen back then. I think the printing press was in use near about then too when they wrote the laws on slander.
Of course I have NO problem with how other countries want to live...if they want a nanny state, have fun.
I, and hopefully still majority of us in the US, do not want such a government.
But really, why would I care what another country does society wise?
Since when is it against the law to post to a mailing list (or any forum) that someone is gay?
Actually, YES. Personally, I think it is one of the funniest shows to come on tv in years. I'm actually surprised at how popular it is (I think it just got picked up for like 2-3 more seasons) because I figured the humor and references would go over most peoples' heads.
In the US, no one HAS to go hungry, or without shelter....there are charity (private, city and faith based) services that the homeless can go to. We actually had them refusing to go to these here in New Orleans, some of them are plain crazy...and just prefer to live on the street. But, if you really need it, shelter and food can be found. There are food banks that people donate to, so that those without can eat. Not everything has to be govt. based.
And, no one with an emergency will be turned away from a hospital. It is against the law to be refused tx at an ER.
You paint a far worse picture of the US than it is here. Trust me on this, 'cause I live in one of the poorest towns around, and it isn't that bad here as you paint it, not by a long shot.
While there are exceptions and outliers in every nation, and every system, I just have to emphasize, it is NOT that bad here as you try to spin it.
Not sure where you're getting your information man. Yes, some states do allow capitol punishment, personally, I don't have a problem with that. If some asshole is proven with a great amount of overwhelming evidence that he did something horrible, like raping, torturing and killing a kid, I would personally set up to volunteer to put a bullet in his head. But, that's another topic.
But, you speak of some kind of rampant poverty over here? Where in the hell did you get that?!??! Even our people in the US version of 'poverty' have it heads and tails better than what true poverty is in the rest of the world. I live in what is a VERY poor city, New Orleans, and while you do see some street people, you do NOT see people sick and dying in the streets. This isn't somewhere impoverished like Africa, or having people poor in the streets like India, which is what you are making it sound like. Truth be known, there isn't poverty here in the US like what real poverty is in the rest of the world. Does everyone here live in a mansion or own a home, no. But, you certainly have a chance in life here to get the things you want out of life. Equal opportunity != equal results, but, even the worst here in the US have it better than most of the world.
Again, I don't have anything against helping people who have fallen (through no fault of their own) on hard times, nor the elderly, nor the people who can't work due to illness, physical injury, etc. I don't, however, have any sympathy for those who are able bodied, and CAN work...but, choose not to.
And, while the economic problem here is bad...on our scale in the US of what is good and bad...it isn't THAT bad. We'll pull through it soon enough, just have to let the market correct itself, get housing prices back to normal, get people out of homes they shouldn't have been in in the first place, and get the credit market back to normal.
But, really.....can you give specific examples in the US where you have seen sick and dying people in the streets with cars driving by them???
Yeah, those wars for oil, and creating a larger empire sure are working well, aren't they? Nice to see we have now annexed some Middle Eastern property for the US, and now have complete control over the oil flowing in Iraq.
Wait? What?...that's not the case? Hm....but, I thought the war was about....
Bird of a feather, flock together as they say.
Pretty much every politician up there is a slick greasy lawyer.
A.K.A. "A Receptacle"
Ivan"
You're not quite as anonymous as you thought you were, Ivan
Life is tough, always has been. In the past, people's families took care of the problems, not society as a whole. Again, if someone is infirmed, retarted, etc...or elderly and not able to work, I don't mind something to help them. But, if you can work, you work. No exceptions.
"And you also have to realise that VERY few people receiving welfare do it for extended periods of time if they don't have to. Welfare provides enough for basic needs like food and shelter (and we have a public health system), it isn't the conditions that many people will endure for long."
Well, your welfare must be much different than ours here in the US. You can go look at the projects (public housing) here in New Orleans where I live, and you can see not just a family living on the dole for a long time, but, entire generations of people living in them on welfare. They never get off!! They get welfare, and free medical care (medicare or medicade I forget which one), they get food stamps, etc. These people have generations of families that are on the taxpayer tit. Why should I support them? They need to get out of the vicious cycle of ignorance and laziness that this type of subsidized life encourages. I'd have much less problem with social programs like these if they were, in fact limited. YOu get 'x' amount of time on it....and hard deadline you are off on your own again. I think that is the only way people will learn.
"About 90% of the wealth is owned by 10% of the population (or thereabouts); it's right and proper that they should relinquish some of that money they have hoarded to support the population that they have exploited with their greed."
This was the main point I noticed in your last post. I just want to know...why am I having to relinquish my money, I certainly have not hoarded a great, vast amount. I've certainly not exploited anyone that I know of with my greed. And yet...."I" the middle class taxpayer am paying the vast majority of the way for these social entitlements.
By your reasoning, if I'm not wealthy, and not exploiting people, I should not have to pay, yet that is the way it is.
A few years ago when privatized social security was being discussed, where do you think most people would've told you their money would be invested? In the stock market, of course. And the media's treatment of it all didn't educate people on leaning towards fixed income/safe return investments for those approaching retirement age."
Since when did it happen that we accepted that being a stupid, uninformed person was the norm, and that we should not only cater to the lowest common denominator, but, protect them from themselves???
It seems that for some reason now, "Average Joe" == Brainless Idiot unable to make own adult decisions for life and future.
As I mentioned in another post...part of this plan is PLANNING. As you start getting closer and closer to retirement age, you start moving from riskier stocks to more steady money areas like bonds and treasury notes...etc. Stuff with very little risk.
If you've done things right, the current corrections and drops in the market should not really affect you that much.
Sure things are down, but, there ARE always jobs out there, just may not be ones you 'want'. Like you mentioned, PhD cab drivers...yes, it sucks, but, you gotta do what you can to put meat on the table. When things pick up, you can move back up to a better job.
Also, I think people need a mentality change. Job for life at a company has NOT been around for a long time, yet many people cling to that idea/ideal. Also, we are now in a very mobile society. Putting down roots for life, is possibly a thing of the past. You have to move to where the jobs are, or at least be willing to relocate, or if you can't sell your house....travel,and get on the road. Long commutes,, contracting gigs...etc.
When times are tough...you have to be willing to do what it takes. But much of your proposition was that if jobs go from your area, you are sunk. To me that tells me one thing...MOVE to a different area where there are jobs for your skillset. Is it pleasant? No...but, you gotta do what you gotta do. There are jobs to be had out there, but, my may have to move from NYC to GA or somewhere...and learn a different lifestyle.
If you do the smart thing, and think long term, this would not hurt you much either.
YOu start investing young, as you start to close in on retirement age, you start moving money from the more risky stocks to safer things, like maybe bonds, etc.
If you are a few years from retirement, you should not have all your money in very volatile stocks, that's just common sense.
Yes, you DO have a choice of when to retire. Anyone that can do simple math knows when they'll hit retirement age, and they should plan accordingly.
You do realize this puts a bit of responsibility on the individual, right? Nothing to be scared of....
I've been kinda surprised that with all the tech and science they throw around on that show, that they don't ever mention Linux."
Troll??
Man...where did that come from? I mean sure, I've written some stuff before that could be taken as very trollish,but, this one doesn't even come near.
But I'm not arguing that everyone has to get rich or perish. Just work hard, and live within your means. That means you don't spend on luxuries (HDTV, cable, fine cars, good booze) till you've bought groceries, and put back money for retirement and general savings. The problem is, that largely people have come to expect the govt. to fund their retirment and take care of all the basics, while they go spend their money on 'fun' stuff as mentioned above. If they stayed at home and cooked...they'd not have the weight problems, and they'd save money, etc.
"In fact I know lots of musicians and artists that did their best work while on the dole (unemployment benefits) and enriched us all. I also know several people on welfare that do great charity work."
I love artists and what they do...I applaud people for doing charity work. However, I don't feel it is my place to work hard, bust my ass to earn money, and then turn around and hand it over to people that are sitting around, doing 'fun' stuff like art and music. Hell, if I could be supported, I'd learn to play the guitar or paint or take more time to enjoy my writing. Unless you are good enough to sell your stuff, that is a HOBBY, it is not a livelyhood. Many charities hire people to work for them...no need to be on the 'dole' when you can work for a charity doing good deeds.
Again, no...not saying you have to get rich. But I don't believe in supporting people to have an easy life. I don't mind giving to the elderly, and the infirmed that cannot work. But, anyone that can work....should.
You have to look at the investing in the market long term. Sure, there are fluctuations, and corrections. But over the long haul...so far, it makes money. Sure, if it drops 50% right now...there are some losses, but, it will go back up. And at a loss today, you still have a market that is higher than it was decades ago when you started.
If the market were to totally fail, and collapse....trust me, there would be no government money to put into programs like SS. We'd have many more problems to worry about if the whole thing fails.
Maybe I'm over optimistic, but, I think things will start to improve in the near future. I personally am wanting to try to start buying stocks now...while there are bargains to be had.