Parent is correct. Access to information is the key point here.
Don't forget that a lot of government agencies, courts, and civic authorities are abandoning hard-copy and moving vast amounts of public information online. Banks, insurance companies, utilities, and cable/dish companies are increasingly expecting their customers to handle all of their business online.
Without some form of access, you willfully exclude a significant portion of the population from participation in the American ideal; in essence, telling them they don't matter enough to merit your attention or concern.
I'm so tired of hearing the traditional Republican line of, "Why should I pay taxes for this kind of thing?". Goddammit people, why shouldn't you?. Which would you rather have: a nation of informed citizens, capable of making a positive contribution to society - both physically, and financiall,; or, would you rather have a collection of poorly educated, militantly anti-government, suspicious reactionaries?
I just bought an Apacer Handy Steno (HT203) and have been pretty impressed with its design. The entire drive, including the cap is surrounded by a braided cable loop that threads through both the body and the cap. This makes it damn difficult to accidentally lose the cap as the cable just swings it out of the way when in use. It's also slim enough to put two in side-by-side USB ports without one blocking out the other.
Speed-wise, its very fast, with advertised read speeds of 20 MB/sec. and write speeds of 14 MB/sec. It's still a little too new for me to vouch for its sturdyness, but I've been using it as a keychain and I imagine that the plastic covering will wear out long before the braided cable does.
"Tough love" doesn't help for someone who doesn't remember. When simple day to day tasks need to be written down to be remembered how can one remember complicated steps that aren't obvious.
You're absolutely right. While its not clear in my original post, exceptions have to be made for those suffering Alzheimer's.
My comments wer more directed at those persistently stubborn types who are more than capable of understanding and learning new things (MBA's, Attorneys, etc.), but who steadfastly refuse to even bother.
Wait till you reach that stage of life.:o)
I'm already there . . . now where did I leave my sweater . . .;-)
My dad is a perfect example. One of the first things he would do on my infrequent visits home, is take off his digital watch and have me adjust it for daylight savings time.
Sounds like your dad needs a little "tough love". Next time he asks, just tell him you've already shown him how to do it many times before and that you can't be bothered anymore. Sure, he'll be upset (initially) but he'll either learn to do it himself, or he'll buy another watch with a winder.
The same thing applies to most folks and their computers. Yes, most of them would prefer that someone else take the responsibility off their hands, but once they come to understand that not everyone has the time to hold their hands they will either adapt, or watch as things go up in a puff of smoke. The pain of having to sift through their own debris will go a long way to stifling their reluctance to accept personal responsibility.
I recently did a cost study on power consumption for the non-profit that work for in Georgia. Here's what I worked out - based on rates from late 2003. Your mileage may vary:
Total Costs per Year for a SINGLE Computer:
Summer Hours (at.07503 cents per kilowatt hour):
Computer and monitor left on for 24 hrs (832.2 kw.)= $62.44 per
Year Computer only left on for 24 hrs (547.5 kw.)= $41.08 per Year
Monitor only left on for 24 hours (284.7 kw.)= $21.36 per Year
Winter Hours (at.03704 cents per kilowatt hour):
Computer and monitor left on for 24 hrs (832.2 kw.)= $30.82 per
Year Computer only left on for 24 hrs (547.5 kw.)= $20.28 per Year
Monitor only left on for 24 hours (284.7 kw.)= $10.55 per Year
After multiplying those numbers by the total number of staff we had, the boss was more than a little shocked that we were basically spending a full-time employee's salary on unnecessary consumption.
A lot of niche market movies such as this are released on a "market tier" basis. Large urban markets like New York and Los Angeles will get the film in it's first week, then, if business is good, it begins trickling down to smaller markets. Sometimes, you'll even see a tier system at work in a major city. A good case in point is the recent film "Garden State" (both thumbs way up, BTW), which originally opened here in Atlanta on only two screens, both of which were in premium theatres inside the city limits. By week two, the movie was on 20 odd screens scattered all over the surrounding suburbs.
It was called an election, and when you cast your vote, you handed your politician of choice (provided he or she won, of course) the power to negotiate a great many private contracts "on your behalf".
Some examples:
Medicare/Medicaid (drug benefits, long-term care)
Agricultural Subsidies
Interstate Highway Construction/Maintenance
Federal Insurace on Bank Deposits (FDIC)
Unemployment Insurance
Energy Administration, Land Mgmt. (e.g., Logging)
Water Treatment/Sewage/Waste Removal
National and International Defense (think: "Blackwater")
Education (grants, and scholarships)
Housing
etc. . . .
Like it or not, elected officials represent "we the people" and in this capacity they negotiate contracts with private industry in order to fulfill the needs/desires of their constituents. They send out RFP's, draft clauses, and sign your consent just as if you had provided Power of Attorney.
I think it's important the prolific abusers of this system (RIAA, MPAA, Micromule, Amazon, etc) get reemed by the other edge of the sword they use on us
You're probably right IF it turns out they actually do get reamed. I suspect though, that this story will ultimately dry up and go away, and the RIAA will return to business as usual. As somebody pointed out a little farther up, we're talking about a rather smallish company trying to take on a litigiuos juggernaut with huge piles of disposable income.
Still though, it would be nice to see the little guy win for a change . . .
But its still bloody easy for "regular" America to get busted for "inducement". Jesus, why doesn't the RIAA and the MPAA just declare open war on their customers, and convince Congress to force us to give them X amount of dollars per month. That's the only thing that'll make them happy.
Let's not forget that the second most deadly terrorist attack on American soil was carried out by a white-skinned, red-state voting, midwestern farm boy, Timothy McVeigh. If you think its only gonna be the "brown" people trying to kill Americans, take a longer look at the history of the world circa 1965 and up.
Oh, and on other thing, just to keep you thinking: Now, thanks to this administration's unwillingness to reestablish the assualt weapons ban, and Ashcroft's unwillingness to use gun ownership databases to keep potentially dangerous folks under observation (that whole "well regulated" part of the second amendment so often overlooked), it's trivial for any wannabe terrorist, white, brown, or black to purchase weapons rivalling or exceeding anything a law enforcement agency can carry.
I was actually thinking about a universal flat tax (so long as there are no more loopholes that enable shit like deducting yachts and SUVs as a business expenses) - it's the only thing that'd be absolutely fair to everyone. My dream is of a one line tax code - "all people pay X" - with no "ifs", "ands" or "buts".
As for corporate relocators, you're probably right in that we'll never be able to change that aspect of our reality. But, I can still hope . . .
Dude. I did say "pure" socialism. None of your examples were even close to such an animal. No one has ever had a pure socialist system. Socailism and capitalism are most likely fundamentally incompatible.
I do have one more question: If it's truly up to US to do for OURSELVES, then I guess you'd be in favor of evaporating all those government subsidies and corporate tax breaks and eliminating all tax loopholes so that every pays a fair and full share? I mean, after all, in a true conservative, capitalist society, shouldn't the same principles apply across the board? Shouldn't corporate America be able to fend for itself as well? Should we the people be forced to shoulder the costs of their ability to practice business? Or the costs of their inability/incompetence/criminality?
Proof, please? Since there's never been one pure instance of socialism in world history (unless you count Adam and Eve, and even that's debatable)), where's the evidence to back this up?
The simple hard fact behind all conservative politics today is that none of it relates to the question of compassion, or even a remote concern for the dissaffected poor/meek/underprivileged. to a conservative, everything is about money, plain and simple. Conservatives fear spending money on anything other than themselves, and the really sad thing is that they try to dress it up as a vague and insincere "concern for the little guy". It's all just so much bullshit.
And BTW, just what, exactly is so small and decentralized about the current conservative government? Seems to me to be a lot bigger than it used to be . . .
Perhaps Bush, with questionable actions of his own, is attempting to put people back in responsible possitions for what they have done. I think he needs to start back here at home, first.
I think maybe he needs to start by accepting some personal responsibility himself.
Slashdot Mirror
Parent is correct. Access to information is the key point here.
Don't forget that a lot of government agencies, courts, and civic authorities are abandoning hard-copy and moving vast amounts of public information online. Banks, insurance companies, utilities, and cable/dish companies are increasingly expecting their customers to handle all of their business online.
Without some form of access, you willfully exclude a significant portion of the population from participation in the American ideal; in essence, telling them they don't matter enough to merit your attention or concern.
I'm so tired of hearing the traditional Republican line of, "Why should I pay taxes for this kind of thing?". Goddammit people, why shouldn't you?. Which would you rather have: a nation of informed citizens, capable of making a positive contribution to society - both physically, and financiall,; or, would you rather have a collection of poorly educated, militantly anti-government, suspicious reactionaries?
I just bought an Apacer Handy Steno (HT203) and have been pretty impressed with its design. The entire drive, including the cap is surrounded by a braided cable loop that threads through both the body and the cap. This makes it damn difficult to accidentally lose the cap as the cable just swings it out of the way when in use. It's also slim enough to put two in side-by-side USB ports without one blocking out the other.
Speed-wise, its very fast, with advertised read speeds of 20 MB/sec. and write speeds of 14 MB/sec. It's still a little too new for me to vouch for its sturdyness, but I've been using it as a keychain and I imagine that the plastic covering will wear out long before the braided cable does.
If anyone's interested, here's a link.
You're absolutely right. While its not clear in my original post, exceptions have to be made for those suffering Alzheimer's.
My comments wer more directed at those persistently stubborn types who are more than capable of understanding and learning new things (MBA's, Attorneys, etc.), but who steadfastly refuse to even bother.
I'm already there . . . now where did I leave my sweater . . . ;-)
Sounds like your dad needs a little "tough love". Next time he asks, just tell him you've already shown him how to do it many times before and that you can't be bothered anymore. Sure, he'll be upset (initially) but he'll either learn to do it himself, or he'll buy another watch with a winder.
The same thing applies to most folks and their computers. Yes, most of them would prefer that someone else take the responsibility off their hands, but once they come to understand that not everyone has the time to hold their hands they will either adapt, or watch as things go up in a puff of smoke. The pain of having to sift through their own debris will go a long way to stifling their reluctance to accept personal responsibility.
Short answer. No.
Not any more likely than Robert Novak being charged with treason for revealing an acting CIA operative's name.
I recently did a cost study on power consumption for the non-profit that work for in Georgia. Here's what I worked out - based on rates from late 2003. Your mileage may vary:
After multiplying those numbers by the total number of staff we had, the boss was more than a little shocked that we were basically spending a full-time employee's salary on unnecessary consumption.
A lot of niche market movies such as this are released on a "market tier" basis. Large urban markets like New York and Los Angeles will get the film in it's first week, then, if business is good, it begins trickling down to smaller markets. Sometimes, you'll even see a tier system at work in a major city. A good case in point is the recent film "Garden State" (both thumbs way up, BTW), which originally opened here in Atlanta on only two screens, both of which were in premium theatres inside the city limits. By week two, the movie was on 20 odd screens scattered all over the surrounding suburbs.
Well, you did.
It was called an election, and when you cast your vote, you handed your politician of choice (provided he or she won, of course) the power to negotiate a great many private contracts "on your behalf".
Like it or not, elected officials represent "we the people" and in this capacity they negotiate contracts with private industry in order to fulfill the needs/desires of their constituents. They send out RFP's, draft clauses, and sign your consent just as if you had provided Power of Attorney.
Here's a online comicthat pokes a little fun at the "Han/Greedo shoots first" argument.
You're probably right IF it turns out they actually do get reamed. I suspect though, that this story will ultimately dry up and go away, and the RIAA will return to business as usual. As somebody pointed out a little farther up, we're talking about a rather smallish company trying to take on a litigiuos juggernaut with huge piles of disposable income.
Still though, it would be nice to see the little guy win for a change . . .
Actually, a few of them apparently deserve to be called a few names. How are these people any different than those we claim to be fighting against?
Torture is torture - regardless of whose side you're on.
But its still bloody easy for "regular" America to get busted for "inducement". Jesus, why doesn't the RIAA and the MPAA just declare open war on their customers, and convince Congress to force us to give them X amount of dollars per month. That's the only thing that'll make them happy.
For those who may not remember, here's alink to a story on a community based fiber project in Palo Alto .
So that's where all those "child" processes come from . . .
Rant appreciated, but . . .
Here's a Scandinavian hijacker (foiled), Zacarias Moussaoui is French, as is Willie Brigitte, and here's a whole bunch of German terrorists for you to learn about. And I won't even begin to go into the Irish side of things . . .
Let's not forget that the second most deadly terrorist attack on American soil was carried out by a white-skinned, red-state voting, midwestern farm boy, Timothy McVeigh. If you think its only gonna be the "brown" people trying to kill Americans, take a longer look at the history of the world circa 1965 and up.
Oh, and on other thing, just to keep you thinking: Now, thanks to this administration's unwillingness to reestablish the assualt weapons ban, and Ashcroft's unwillingness to use gun ownership databases to keep potentially dangerous folks under observation (that whole "well regulated" part of the second amendment so often overlooked), it's trivial for any wannabe terrorist, white, brown, or black to purchase weapons rivalling or exceeding anything a law enforcement agency can carry.
From the Department of Redundancy Department:
Can someone explain to me why in the name of Jesus I would want such a graphically intensive "face" on a server?!?
How about I reserve some of those resources for, oh, I don't know, service related processes?
Why does this not surprise me?
Yeah. Like the average user is going to look at your lava lamp and say, "Geez, looks like Bob borked the sendmail build again . . ."
Thanks to that sentence and the topic of virtual girlfriends in general, I almost want to sit down and cry.
I don't think you have the right Kaufman. this guy is still very much alive, and released an Ashley Judd movie (messy) just this year.
Thank you for a well reasoned reply.
I was actually thinking about a universal flat tax (so long as there are no more loopholes that enable shit like deducting yachts and SUVs as a business expenses) - it's the only thing that'd be absolutely fair to everyone. My dream is of a one line tax code - "all people pay X" - with no "ifs", "ands" or "buts".
As for corporate relocators, you're probably right in that we'll never be able to change that aspect of our reality. But, I can still hope . . .
Dude. I did say "pure" socialism. None of your examples were even close to such an animal. No one has ever had a pure socialist system. Socailism and capitalism are most likely fundamentally incompatible.
I do have one more question: If it's truly up to US to do for OURSELVES, then I guess you'd be in favor of evaporating all those government subsidies and corporate tax breaks and eliminating all tax loopholes so that every pays a fair and full share? I mean, after all, in a true conservative, capitalist society, shouldn't the same principles apply across the board? Shouldn't corporate America be able to fend for itself as well? Should we the people be forced to shoulder the costs of their ability to practice business? Or the costs of their inability/incompetence/criminality?
Proof, please? Since there's never been one pure instance of socialism in world history (unless you count Adam and Eve, and even that's debatable)), where's the evidence to back this up?
The simple hard fact behind all conservative politics today is that none of it relates to the question of compassion, or even a remote concern for the dissaffected poor/meek/underprivileged. to a conservative, everything is about money, plain and simple. Conservatives fear spending money on anything other than themselves, and the really sad thing is that they try to dress it up as a vague and insincere "concern for the little guy". It's all just so much bullshit.
And BTW, just what, exactly is so small and decentralized about the current conservative government? Seems to me to be a lot bigger than it used to be . . .
I think maybe he needs to start by accepting some personal responsibility himself.