"If I accelerate to 97 km/h in 3.7 seconds, I most likely will hit the car in front of me and/or get a ticket for reckless driving.
Hmm...are ALL your streets that crowded?
I easily find places that I could go that fast. My current car doesn't have that much speed and acceleration (as a Tesla), but, they're respectfully close, and I often find times and places to wind them up pretty good.
If I go at 201 km/h, I'll also get a ticket for speeding."
That's what radar detectors and CB radios are for....
"I beg to differ [teslamotors.com]. They're already working on a car that has more than two seats and will sell for 1/2 the price of the roadster. I'd say that's quite a jump in affordability. The Model S is nowhere near economy car prices, but it's a large step closer."
But, who the hell wants a sedan/family car??
Ok, I guess if you have a family, but the parent poster was, I think, referring to making something like the Tesla more affordable....a 2 seat, well crafted, performance vehicle that doesn't look like a fugly Prius.
If they would get the Tesla in the ballpark price of a Vette, I'd be fighting my way to the front of the line.
Then again...I've never owned a car with more than 2 seats...always had 2 seat sports cars. Ok, technically the 911 turbo had 4 seats (R.I.P. Katrina), but, those weren't functional enough to count.
I just can't picture 'lusting' after something that looks like another Camry...with the only difference being that it is electrically powered.
"So, other than helping citizens of the country, what pray tell, should the government do with its money? "
First...it is NOT the governments money. It is the taxpayers money. If the government has an excess of it, then the taxpayers should be able to keep more of their own money. Let the people decide what to do with that money, rather than a bunch of politicians spreading it around to do nothing more than try to get reelected by pandering to corporations for more funding, or to special interest groups that by far do not represent what the total electorate wants.
"Tipping in the US is fucked. It would make more sense to raise the menu prices slightly, pay the waitstaff a reasonable wage, and tip ONLY when someone goes above and beyond their job for you."
I hear that a lot from foreign people. Well, thing is..it is so ingrained here, it isn't going to change. So, I take it to mind, that the price of dining out, is what the menu says, plus tax, plus at least 20% tip. Since that is the way it is here...if one can't afford to pay that much, then they shouldn't be eating out at a place with service.
Not to mention, I'd venture to guess that most people in tipped service jobs would NOT want that to change, as that you can make a damned good bit of money if you are good and know how to 'shmooz' people. This is especially true of bartending.
"I notice many tip waged people get so mad that people aren't willing to part with 2 + dollars over the already inflated prices on things they are paying for. Here, buy this 8 dollar shot, and you better fucking tip me 2 dollars on top of that for me walking 2 feet to the side, pulling a bottle out and tipping a few ounces of liquid into it then placing it on the counter...."
Well, I found it almost ALWAYS pays to tip your bartender well. You get better service, and MUCH better pours on drinks. I know it worked when I was on the other side of the bar. You learned that non-drinkers, those that occasionally had a frozen daquiri or some damned ice cream drink...are not going to tip you, and those drinks take a long bit to make, thus slowing you down. So, often, those drinks, got shorted on alcohol pours, and I'd give the 'extra' I'd saved in bar costs to those people that really drink, and can appreciate when you do give them a 'little extra'. Frozen fluffy foo-foo drinks...God, I hate the thought of them still today, and I've not been working in a bar in decades.
But, I hear your point of view. But, it isn't going to change to just salary in the US, so, I implore you to just consider it part of the cost of going out to dine/drink. That tip *IS* their salary. What they pay on the clock to servers, basically covers what they have to pay in payroll taxes, not much more.
And too , at the end of the night, that server has to declare at least 8% (it may be more today) of their total sales (food and booze) as taxable tip income. So, if you still a waiter, it actually costs them money to wait on you in essence.
"Let me get this straight, do you think all 1,000 of those shows hostesses remained a happy whore on cam the entire time, or do you think, just maybe, the depressing face of a girl who has no other viable options popped up?"
What's that song...something like "The lapdance is better when the stripper is crying..."
I'm not familiar with Time Warner, but, could you not see if they have something like Cox cable does?
I just pay for a business connection....nice and speedy, no caps, no blocked ports, I can run servers all I want and I even have a very low level SLA for uptimes. Service is normally great (a little less great post Katrina). All for only $70/mo....
Nice side benefit...you can split the incoming line, and get free analog tv off it, as well as the free HDTV/digital channels that are unencrypted. I run these into my mythtv boxes.
Anyway, does this company not offer a business connection? If you want more bandwidth than they give on the consumer side, get a business connection. It isn't like you have to show them a license or anything....
"Or if you are self employed, you are simply expected to report it directly to the Feds using a very complex system of itemization. "
It isn't really that hard.
First thing to do...incorporate yourself. I went the "S" corp route. Out of the companies earnings...I pay myself a 'reasonable' salary. For easy example, let's say I bill out and the company collects $100K annually. Now, I pay myself about $30K salary. I only have to pay employment taxes (SS, medicare, unemployment ins, etc) on that $30K. The remaining $70K falls through at EOY on my personal taxes...and I just pay state and federal income taxes on that (LA has state taxes). Now, I do, throughout the year, keep up with mileage I drive, all expenses..etc., and I write that off as company expenditures....to make as much of that remaining $70K non-taxable. I fully fund an HSA (Health Savings Account) and that is all pre-tax dollars, etc.
Anyway, not complex, but, it is a bit of paperwork to keep up with. In the long run, though...I get to keep and spend more of my money myself and keep more from uncle sam. All legally. It is sad you have to jump through hoops to do this, but, it works. I'm back on a W2 gig right now, and I hate it....but, I'm still working smaller things on the side, and hope to go back to the self employ in the near future. It is really the ONLY way to keep your hard earned money these days. It is worth the extra paperwork, and a few hours a month on Quickbooks Pro.
"certain jobs place you in contact with certain groups of the population, and after time, the workers begin to see the customers traits as representative of the population in general."
Growing up, while in highschool through much of college, I started as a dishwasher in a restaurant...worked up to busboy, and also at times as a waiter and bar tender (never a fast food worker, avoid that if at all possible). I also worked in retail sales at a decent department store.
I gotta tell you, from those experiences...I know and still consider that about 95% of the general public out there are completely fucked in the head. They are idiots, and you have to wonder how they know enough not to wander blindly in traffic. It amazes you what people out there are really like.
I often think and wish we had some compulsory program that forced kids growing up to work a year in retail and food service. Just at the very least, to let them know how to treat people. I cannot believe how rude some people are to service people...if you've been on the serving end, you aren't likely to be that way when you 'grow up'. And don't get me started on people not knowing how to tip. But, that's another rant.
Anyway, yes....if you work and deal with the public for any length of time, you start to understand how 'people can be that stupid' when you see something stupid on tv. You start to wonder how the world actually functions with so many dullards wandering around. It gets kinda scary.
And I really feel sorry for those today working service....people are MUCH more rude and inconsiderate than back when I was young and did the gig. Hell, the other day, I was eating alone for a lunch...at a sushi buffet. I saw 2 couples in a table next to me with 2 very young kids. They were all well dressed, and did decent you could tell. They had let the kids throw fucking food EVERYWHERE...on the seats, on the floor...everywhere around them.
I sat and ate and watched...to see if they would at least try to clean up a little. No. As they left, I muttered.."you're not really gonna leave all that mess are you?" Well, short story was, one guy started yelling "Hey, that's why we tip, so we can leave as much mess as we want...etc...etc.". We almost got into a fight (I did nothing to provoke it other than my comment), and he finally stormed out of there with his family and friends....but, man....just rude of them. And my comment didn't warrant the outbursts that followed either.
I guess it is just this day in age....common decency is gone.
"We can go back to having no income taxes if we get seriously cut the size of the military, get rid of medicare, all the welfare crap.. and, well, we also have to pay off the national debt."
Honestly, personally, I don't have a problem with paying a reasonable amount of tax. I'd prefer most of it be to my state I live in, since that govt. is more apt to answer directly my needs, etc. I'd like to cut the MAJORITY of the tax payment to the feds off. I'd like to pay them enough to keep up a strong defense, especially seeing as that is one of the very few roles and powers they are supposed to have constitutionally. I don't like the ponzi scheme that social security is, but, I am somewhat for a very bottom layer safety net...for the elderly and truly infirmed. I guess that that is something that might be best at the national level....but, for most everything else, screw the big federal govt. behemoth.
In general, I don't mind paying some taxes...locally for where I live, and a small portion to the feds to let them do the few things they are supposed to do constitutionally. Let's get rid of all the welfare and extraneous crap the feds currently do, and I would think that once we do that...saving enough money to pay off our debts in a few years, we could do much better letting the states have more of their own power and choice. I'm in a state that gets back more than it pays in the tax game...and I'm all for QUITTING the feds gathering taxes and using the redistribution to the states as blackmail to gain unconstitutional power over the states. I'd give up that income to the state from other just to get the federal power monkey off our backs.
I guess I should quit now....lest I be put on a list of militia group membership by a govt. study of potential troublemakers.
"I'm fairly certain that, were you to be into kiddie porn, you'd be looking at it more than necessary and be noticed by those around you or be caught with it outside an investigation. It's an interesting idea, but I don't think it would work out quite as well as you're implying."
Yeah, I kinda gotta guess they'd get a bit suspicious of you if you were constantly taking work home with you.
"Dual-layer blanks have crappy compatibility with many stand-alone players. A shrunk DVD might lose a bit of quality when it's compressed down to one-layer size, but it least it can generally be depended on to play. DL blanks, not so much."
REally?
What brands/models have you run into that have problems?
I've never had a problem with discs I've burned not working on stand alone players....unless the disc itself was scratched/messed up....
a coalition of persons of interest is growing at an exponential rate on the Internets. Members of the group, posting in various websites under the handle, Guest, often post provocative and sometimes unlawful comments. By using the handle name "Guest", they were afforded anonymity."
Not only that...but, I hear there are people who actually register accounts with FALSE or misleading information as to their true identity. Pseudonyms and the like.
"If you're not looking at the road while speeding, you should get a ticket. I don't mind going fast if the road and weather conditions allow it, but at least pay attention."
I do pay attention.
:)
I do listen for the radar detector to go off....and of course, I keep up with road conditions with the old CB radio.
Believe it or not, the CB works fantastic...these days, I know where the cops are WAY before the detector goes off about 98% of the time.
"Laptop with 1-layer burner perhaps, and not willing to pay the USB premium for a burner?"
Are there that many people with only ONE computer...that is a laptop?
Geez...even people that aren't geeky that I know have at least 2 computers around the house, one is a desktop. I know I'm a bit unusual, in that I have on average, more than one computer per room of the house.
But really, don't even most laptops today come with dual layer dvd burners? And a standalone burner is only like $100 these days.....hardly an impediment to anyone buying one.
With dual sided dvd's so cheap these days, why bother 'shrinking' the dvd? I keep dual layer and single layer blanks around. I look at the size of the.iso image, and choose the size disk I need.
This will be cool, when someone is able to crack the system, and be able to monitor the cops as a part of the general public.
They could put this in with Google maps....which would be cool. You see a large group of cop 'dots' in a group, you know THAT is the spot to go for doughnuts.
You see cop dots on the map along the highway...slow down or you'll get a ticket.
Well, that part of the Amendment needs to be clarified. It was there originally so slaves could be let in as citizens.
We need to change it to where at least ONE parent has to be a US citizen before the kid is...just coming over here and dropping one shouldn't make them a citizen.
Just so much of it, assumes WANTING a permant mate....that is good if you want kids, but, if you're not wanting to have kids, I don't see any need to get married. That way, when you get tired of one chick....drop her and get another one. That way, things never get boring...and you don't get nagged, which I cannot stand at all.
But to each his own...different schools of thought and all.
Ok on many other points, but, I just cannot even come close to believing this was the motivation. I mean, we certainly aren't benefiting in any manner from Iraqi oil.
It isn't shipped to us for free, nor used really to repay any war costs, etc.
If the war was for oil, and US imperialism to take over that country for oil, I'd have thought we'd at least have seen the oil benefits by now.
"That's the funniest part of your post. I believe Phil Donahue lost his job on TV because he wasn't pro-bush/war enough. "
I think you can check the records...Phil lost his show due fully to dismal ratings. Wasn't his last show on MSNBC? I mean...if a liberal talk show guy can't even make it on THAT network....well...
It seems that these days, if you speak ill against Obama (the chosen one), you will be smitten down and piled up upon by anyone that was a fervent disciple during the election or of a democratic leaning.
It is weird, but, while Bush was in office, people criticized him on a constant basis (IMHO, much of it deserved in the last years), but, you didn't risk the vitriol, public shunning and public crucifixion that you seem to get if you speak ill of the Obama administration today.
Slashdot Mirror
Hmm...are ALL your streets that crowded?
I easily find places that I could go that fast. My current car doesn't have that much speed and acceleration (as a Tesla), but, they're respectfully close, and I often find times and places to wind them up pretty good.
If I go at 201 km/h, I'll also get a ticket for speeding."
That's what radar detectors and CB radios are for....
But, who the hell wants a sedan/family car??
Ok, I guess if you have a family, but the parent poster was, I think, referring to making something like the Tesla more affordable....a 2 seat, well crafted, performance vehicle that doesn't look like a fugly Prius.
If they would get the Tesla in the ballpark price of a Vette, I'd be fighting my way to the front of the line.
Then again...I've never owned a car with more than 2 seats...always had 2 seat sports cars. Ok, technically the 911 turbo had 4 seats (R.I.P. Katrina), but, those weren't functional enough to count.
I just can't picture 'lusting' after something that looks like another Camry...with the only difference being that it is electrically powered.
First...it is NOT the governments money. It is the taxpayers money. If the government has an excess of it, then the taxpayers should be able to keep more of their own money. Let the people decide what to do with that money, rather than a bunch of politicians spreading it around to do nothing more than try to get reelected by pandering to corporations for more funding, or to special interest groups that by far do not represent what the total electorate wants.
Pretty simple really.
I hear that a lot from foreign people. Well, thing is..it is so ingrained here, it isn't going to change. So, I take it to mind, that the price of dining out, is what the menu says, plus tax, plus at least 20% tip. Since that is the way it is here...if one can't afford to pay that much, then they shouldn't be eating out at a place with service.
Not to mention, I'd venture to guess that most people in tipped service jobs would NOT want that to change, as that you can make a damned good bit of money if you are good and know how to 'shmooz' people. This is especially true of bartending.
"I notice many tip waged people get so mad that people aren't willing to part with 2 + dollars over the already inflated prices on things they are paying for. Here, buy this 8 dollar shot, and you better fucking tip me 2 dollars on top of that for me walking 2 feet to the side, pulling a bottle out and tipping a few ounces of liquid into it then placing it on the counter...."
Well, I found it almost ALWAYS pays to tip your bartender well. You get better service, and MUCH better pours on drinks. I know it worked when I was on the other side of the bar. You learned that non-drinkers, those that occasionally had a frozen daquiri or some damned ice cream drink...are not going to tip you, and those drinks take a long bit to make, thus slowing you down. So, often, those drinks, got shorted on alcohol pours, and I'd give the 'extra' I'd saved in bar costs to those people that really drink, and can appreciate when you do give them a 'little extra'. Frozen fluffy foo-foo drinks...God, I hate the thought of them still today, and I've not been working in a bar in decades.
But, I hear your point of view. But, it isn't going to change to just salary in the US, so, I implore you to just consider it part of the cost of going out to dine/drink. That tip *IS* their salary. What they pay on the clock to servers, basically covers what they have to pay in payroll taxes, not much more.
And too , at the end of the night, that server has to declare at least 8% (it may be more today) of their total sales (food and booze) as taxable tip income. So, if you still a waiter, it actually costs them money to wait on you in essence.
What's that song...something like "The lapdance is better when the stripper is crying..."
I just pay for a business connection....nice and speedy, no caps, no blocked ports, I can run servers all I want and I even have a very low level SLA for uptimes. Service is normally great (a little less great post Katrina). All for only $70/mo....
Nice side benefit...you can split the incoming line, and get free analog tv off it, as well as the free HDTV/digital channels that are unencrypted. I run these into my mythtv boxes.
Anyway, does this company not offer a business connection? If you want more bandwidth than they give on the consumer side, get a business connection. It isn't like you have to show them a license or anything....
It isn't really that hard.
First thing to do...incorporate yourself. I went the "S" corp route. Out of the companies earnings...I pay myself a 'reasonable' salary. For easy example, let's say I bill out and the company collects $100K annually. Now, I pay myself about $30K salary. I only have to pay employment taxes (SS, medicare, unemployment ins, etc) on that $30K. The remaining $70K falls through at EOY on my personal taxes...and I just pay state and federal income taxes on that (LA has state taxes). Now, I do, throughout the year, keep up with mileage I drive, all expenses..etc., and I write that off as company expenditures....to make as much of that remaining $70K non-taxable. I fully fund an HSA (Health Savings Account) and that is all pre-tax dollars, etc.
Anyway, not complex, but, it is a bit of paperwork to keep up with. In the long run, though...I get to keep and spend more of my money myself and keep more from uncle sam. All legally. It is sad you have to jump through hoops to do this, but, it works. I'm back on a W2 gig right now, and I hate it....but, I'm still working smaller things on the side, and hope to go back to the self employ in the near future. It is really the ONLY way to keep your hard earned money these days. It is worth the extra paperwork, and a few hours a month on Quickbooks Pro.
Growing up, while in highschool through much of college, I started as a dishwasher in a restaurant...worked up to busboy, and also at times as a waiter and bar tender (never a fast food worker, avoid that if at all possible). I also worked in retail sales at a decent department store.
I gotta tell you, from those experiences...I know and still consider that about 95% of the general public out there are completely fucked in the head. They are idiots, and you have to wonder how they know enough not to wander blindly in traffic. It amazes you what people out there are really like.
I often think and wish we had some compulsory program that forced kids growing up to work a year in retail and food service. Just at the very least, to let them know how to treat people. I cannot believe how rude some people are to service people...if you've been on the serving end, you aren't likely to be that way when you 'grow up'. And don't get me started on people not knowing how to tip. But, that's another rant.
Anyway, yes....if you work and deal with the public for any length of time, you start to understand how 'people can be that stupid' when you see something stupid on tv. You start to wonder how the world actually functions with so many dullards wandering around. It gets kinda scary.
And I really feel sorry for those today working service....people are MUCH more rude and inconsiderate than back when I was young and did the gig. Hell, the other day, I was eating alone for a lunch...at a sushi buffet. I saw 2 couples in a table next to me with 2 very young kids. They were all well dressed, and did decent you could tell. They had let the kids throw fucking food EVERYWHERE...on the seats, on the floor...everywhere around them.
I sat and ate and watched...to see if they would at least try to clean up a little. No. As they left, I muttered.."you're not really gonna leave all that mess are you?" Well, short story was, one guy started yelling "Hey, that's why we tip, so we can leave as much mess as we want...etc...etc.". We almost got into a fight (I did nothing to provoke it other than my comment), and he finally stormed out of there with his family and friends....but, man....just rude of them. And my comment didn't warrant the outbursts that followed either.
I guess it is just this day in age....common decency is gone.
Honestly, personally, I don't have a problem with paying a reasonable amount of tax. I'd prefer most of it be to my state I live in, since that govt. is more apt to answer directly my needs, etc. I'd like to cut the MAJORITY of the tax payment to the feds off. I'd like to pay them enough to keep up a strong defense, especially seeing as that is one of the very few roles and powers they are supposed to have constitutionally. I don't like the ponzi scheme that social security is, but, I am somewhat for a very bottom layer safety net...for the elderly and truly infirmed. I guess that that is something that might be best at the national level....but, for most everything else, screw the big federal govt. behemoth.
In general, I don't mind paying some taxes...locally for where I live, and a small portion to the feds to let them do the few things they are supposed to do constitutionally. Let's get rid of all the welfare and extraneous crap the feds currently do, and I would think that once we do that...saving enough money to pay off our debts in a few years, we could do much better letting the states have more of their own power and choice. I'm in a state that gets back more than it pays in the tax game...and I'm all for QUITTING the feds gathering taxes and using the redistribution to the states as blackmail to gain unconstitutional power over the states. I'd give up that income to the state from other just to get the federal power monkey off our backs.
I guess I should quit now....lest I be put on a list of militia group membership by a govt. study of potential troublemakers.
Let me get this straight, you actually get TIRED of looking at nekkid chicks? (assuming you're a guy)
Yeah, I kinda gotta guess they'd get a bit suspicious of you if you were constantly taking work home with you.
Personally, I'm backing up the dvds as a service to Netflix. You know..in case they lose theirs and need a copy back some day.
REally?
What brands/models have you run into that have problems?
I've never had a problem with discs I've burned not working on stand alone players....unless the disc itself was scratched/messed up....
As I understand it, it was also supposed to be temporary.
What happened to that??
Can you elaborate how you did the conversion?
a coalition of persons of interest is growing at an exponential rate on the Internets. Members of the group, posting in various websites under the handle, Guest, often post provocative and sometimes unlawful comments. By using the handle name "Guest", they were afforded anonymity."
Not only that...but, I hear there are people who actually register accounts with FALSE or misleading information as to their true identity. Pseudonyms and the like.
What the hell is this country coming to?
I do pay attention.
I do listen for the radar detector to go off....and of course, I keep up with road conditions with the old CB radio.
Believe it or not, the CB works fantastic...these days, I know where the cops are WAY before the detector goes off about 98% of the time.
Sometimes, old tech is hard to beat.
Are there that many people with only ONE computer...that is a laptop?
Geez...even people that aren't geeky that I know have at least 2 computers around the house, one is a desktop. I know I'm a bit unusual, in that I have on average, more than one computer per room of the house.
But really, don't even most laptops today come with dual layer dvd burners? And a standalone burner is only like $100 these days.....hardly an impediment to anyone buying one.
dvdbackup -> mkisofs -> growisofs
Rip them...create .iso image.....burn to a dvd.
With dual sided dvd's so cheap these days, why bother 'shrinking' the dvd? I keep dual layer and single layer blanks around. I look at the size of the .iso image, and choose the size disk I need.
They could put this in with Google maps....which would be cool. You see a large group of cop 'dots' in a group, you know THAT is the spot to go for doughnuts.
You see cop dots on the map along the highway...slow down or you'll get a ticket.
If you're a criminal, well, that ones obvious.
Interesting scenarios come to mind....
We need to change it to where at least ONE parent has to be a US citizen before the kid is...just coming over here and dropping one shouldn't make them a citizen.
Just so much of it, assumes WANTING a permant mate....that is good if you want kids, but, if you're not wanting to have kids, I don't see any need to get married. That way, when you get tired of one chick....drop her and get another one. That way, things never get boring...and you don't get nagged, which I cannot stand at all.
But to each his own...different schools of thought and all.
Ok on many other points, but, I just cannot even come close to believing this was the motivation. I mean, we certainly aren't benefiting in any manner from Iraqi oil.
It isn't shipped to us for free, nor used really to repay any war costs, etc.
If the war was for oil, and US imperialism to take over that country for oil, I'd have thought we'd at least have seen the oil benefits by now.
I think you can check the records...Phil lost his show due fully to dismal ratings. Wasn't his last show on MSNBC? I mean...if a liberal talk show guy can't even make it on THAT network....well...
Hmm....I fear now for the EFF.
It seems that these days, if you speak ill against Obama (the chosen one), you will be smitten down and piled up upon by anyone that was a fervent disciple during the election or of a democratic leaning.
It is weird, but, while Bush was in office, people criticized him on a constant basis (IMHO, much of it deserved in the last years), but, you didn't risk the vitriol, public shunning and public crucifixion that you seem to get if you speak ill of the Obama administration today.