I'm sorry, but with so many experienced American programmers and engineers unemployed or underemployed, I don't see the benefit of bringing many more permanent workers into the pool from abroad.
The U.S. deliberately produces way too many technical PhDs, with the result that graduates spend years as relatively low-payed post-docs, and have extreme difficulty getting suitable permanent positions.
I think qualified Americans, many of whom are ethnically Chinese or Indian, should have first shot at what jobs exist.
It's just amazing that the lawyer-politicians who set up all these visa programs somehow always forget to bring in foreign lawyers along with the techies. Salaries for lawyers have sky-rocketed, and I would advise any young person to look at a career there before any technical field.
I'm also unclear on the value of transferring our most valuable technical knowledge to China, surely our number one potential enemy in the future. Bill Gates is certainly keen on it, and of course just had the Chinese premier over for a nice dinner.
Apple has never been a huge H1-B backer, but Bill Gates is MR. H1-B. He's now lobbying Congress to allow in almost unlimited numbers of foreign programmers - anyone with an American Masters degree, e.g. How they will flock! What Bill wants, Congress rushes to do, and Bill has always loved flocking American programmers!
The Microsoft mogul says America needs more foreign engineers and programmers to compete. Critics say it's all about cheap labor.
By Rebecca Clarren Salon Magazine...
Generally, industry lobbyists are quick with statistics and reports, but in this case it appears they weren't needed. Neither Microsoft nor Intel would reveal how many Ph.D.s or master's students they hired last year, and how many they need for next year. When the companies and their lobbyists were asked what data and reports they showed Congress to convince them of the need for these new visas, they reported that they don't have any reports and statistics. Marcus Courtney, president of WashTech/CWA, a tech workers union, says as long as they have Bill Gates on their side, "they don't need to use anything to substantiate their arguments."
"William Gates was in Washington, lobbying -- a pretty high-priced lobbyist -- to come talk about the needs of Microsoft, a marvelous company, high-tech, enormous advances for America -- he wants more people with Ph.D.s and wants a larger quota of visas for those people to come in," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the bill's author, told Salon when asked what data the industry had shown him. "We have accommodated that. And we have created more opportunities for people to come in who are students."
Such ardor for Gates flows from both sides of the aisle. When asked about reports and data presented to convince Democrats on the Judiciary Committee that the U.S. didn't have the workforce it needed to fill these jobs, Tracy Schmaler, spokesperson for the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, responded: "Did you know Bill Gates has been pretty high-profile on this?"
Critics of the bill, mainly academics and those who represent American tech workers, say they have no voice on this issue; that Congress has been blinded by campaign contributions of big companies. In 2004, Microsoft alone spent $9.46 million on lobbying and hired 16 different firms; it listed immigration as one of its top issues on lobbying disclosure forms, according to data from the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics. That same year, computer and Internet industries spent $70.5 million on lobbying.
"There is no greater case study to understand corporate power in politics," says Courtney of the tech workers union. "I could give you 75 reports that prove that H-1B is a horribly flawed program that hurts American workers, but it doesn't matter. As long as Bill Gates says there's a shortage, and that's it, thanks for playing, game over, try again next session."
Rather OT, but I'm unable to submit stories [from Win XP], hope someone will find this worth submitting. How 'the system' works to help Bill produce huge systems without running out of money - cheap labor.
The Microsoft mogul says America needs more foreign engineers and programmers to compete. Critics say it's all about cheap labor.
By Rebecca Clarren Salon Magazine...
Generally, industry lobbyists are quick with statistics and reports, but in this case it appears they weren't needed. Neither Microsoft nor Intel would reveal how many Ph.D.s or master's students they hired last year, and how many they need for next year. When the companies and their lobbyists were asked what data and reports they showed Congress to convince them of the need for these new visas, they reported that they don't have any reports and statistics. Marcus Courtney, president of WashTech/CWA, a tech workers union, says as long as they have Bill Gates on their side, "they don't need to use anything to substantiate their arguments."
"William Gates was in Washington, lobbying -- a pretty high-priced lobbyist -- to come talk about the needs of Microsoft, a marvelous company, high-tech, enormous advances for America -- he wants more people with Ph.D.s and wants a larger quota of visas for those people to come in," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the bill's author, told Salon when asked what data the industry had shown him. "We have accommodated that. And we have created more opportunities for people to come in who are students."
Such ardor for Gates flows from both sides of the aisle. When asked about reports and data presented to convince Democrats on the Judiciary Committee that the U.S. didn't have the workforce it needed to fill these jobs, Tracy Schmaler, spokesperson for the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, responded: "Did you know Bill Gates has been pretty high-profile on this?"
Critics of the bill, mainly academics and those who represent American tech workers, say they have no voice on this issue; that Congress has been blinded by campaign contributions of big companies. In 2004, Microsoft alone spent $9.46 million on lobbying and hired 16 different firms; it listed immigration as one of its top issues on lobbying disclosure forms, according to data from the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics. That same year, computer and Internet industries spent $70.5 million on lobbying.
"There is no greater case study to understand corporate power in politics," says Courtney of the tech workers union. "I could give you 75 reports that prove that H-1B is a horribly flawed program that hurts American workers, but it doesn't matter. As long as Bill Gates says there's a shortage, and that's it, thanks for playing, game over, try again next session."
Linux Backers Form Network To Buy Software Patents
New Nonprofit Company, Funded by IBM and Others, Aims to Reduce Legal Risks
By DON CLARK Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL November 10, 2005
Five big backers of Linux are funding an effort to buy up related software patents, the latest in a series of efforts to reduce legal risks that could impede the wider use of the operating system.
A new nonprofit company, called Open Invention Network, is receiving an undisclosed amount of money from International Business Machines Corp., Sony Corp., Philips Electronics NV, Novell Inc. and Red Hat Inc. It plans to buy Linux-related patents, offering royalty-free licenses to companies and individuals that pledge not to assert their own patents against the network's other licensees.
Patents are often cited as a threat for users of Linux and other "open source" programs, which take their name from shared programming instructions called source code that companies once routinely kept secret. Such software often uses code contributed by many organizations, making it difficult to ensure that parts of programs don't violate software patents.
Patent suits over Linux have been scarce. The possibility remains that patent holders could try to compel sellers or users of such software to pay royalties.
Microsoft Corp. has indirectly used patent risks of open-source software in its marketing, stressing that it offers indemnification from patent suits for users of its competing products.
Besides the threat of potential patent suits from companies that create their own products, Linux backers cite the danger from what are sometimes called "trolls" -- companies that have no other business than acquiring patents and charging companies for using them....
Re:And they're increasing H-1b's by 50% now.
on
The H-1B Swindle
·
· Score: 1
JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER
by Rob Sanchez
October 21, 2005 No. 1352 ---
Today I talked to Roy Beck of NumbersUSA to get some inside information about why the Senate Judiciary approved more H-1B and green card visas. He said the word is out in Washington DC that this was the result of intense lobbying by Microsoft. Last week lobbyists from Microsoft went to every Congressional office to lobby for more visas. Some people on Capitol Hill are actually referring to the Senate proposal as the "Bill Gates" bill.
---
My source for the "Bill Gates Act" is this "Job Destruction Newsletter," sent out to a free e-mail list by Rob Sanchez. Although the Newsletter is archived at his web site:
also sent this information out to his free e-mail list.
I consider all of these people reliable and well-informed, in contrast to the pro-industry propaganda found in MSM [Main Stream Media].
I can't suggest stories to/. since they apparently dump all attempted contributions from Win XP users, a bug that is not being addressed currently according to their bug list. - The wrong way to attack Microsoft, IMHO.
I would be grateful if you or someone would attempt to post this info, and even more the following time-critical info [e-mail from Norm Matloff: ]
---
To: programmer mailing list
I urge you to call and express your opinion, pro or con. (Obviously I support Byrd on this issue.)
Yes, CALL. And make sure you talk to someone who handles immigration, NOT whoever answers the phone.
The sample message below is far too complicated. CONGRESS DOESN'T CARE ABOUT REASONING OR LOGIC; all they understand is pressure. Keep your message short, just a couple of sentences. But make sure they understand that you feel STRONGLY about this issue.
Norm
----- Forwarded message from Sandra Gunn
Date: Tue, 1 Nov 2005 13:15:55 -0800 (PST) From: Sandra Gunn Reply-To: Sandra Gunn To: matloff@cs.ucdavis.edu Subject: URGENT ALERT! Senate Voting Tommorrow on Amdt to Stop Foreign Worker/Immigration Increase
URGENT ALERT FROM FAIR!
Senate Voting Tomorrow on Amendment to Strip Foreign Worker/Immigration Increase from Deficit Reduction Bill
Call your Senators Immediately and Urge a YES Vote for the Byrd Amendment
THIS JUST IN...Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) has decided to offer an amendment tomorrow to the Deficit Reduction Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 2005 (S. 1932) that will strip out language added by the Judiciary Committee that sells out American workers by expanding employment-based visas, H-1B high tech worker visas and accompanying family members by an estimated 368,000 per year.
PLEASE CALL YOUR SENATORS IMMEDIATELY AND URGE A YES VOTE FOR THE BYRD AMENDMENT.
This will come up tomorrow, so we have less than 24 hours to make an impact. If you call during business hours, ask to speak with or leave a message for the legislative assistant handling immigration. If calling after business hours, please leave a message on your senators' voicemail.
Call the Capitol Switchboard (202-224-3121) and ask to be connected, or find direct phone numbers on our web site at
Re:And they're increasing H-1b's by 50% now.
on
The H-1B Swindle
·
· Score: 1
Americans who oppose this should contact your Senators and Congressperson and let them know, preferably by phone.
They are afraid of public pressure. This is being done as stealth as possible with little news coverage in the major papers, and being hidden in some big budget bill.
I saw a recent survey where 84% of the people responding said the U.S. Government is not doing enough to protect American jobs from going overseas. If people really understood that they are bringing in foreigners to take the jobs here they would be real upset.
The American establishment is greatly in favor of this program and tries to sneak it thru. Politicians want to curry favor [no pun intended] with corporations so they get those lovely no-work Corporate Board seats when they retire.
In his last years with AOL, e.g., Alexander Haig, former Secretary of State, was pulling down about $30 million a year in stock option grants. More recent board members included Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice, until called away by higher duties.
H1-B is the single biggest reason that India and other countries are now competive with the U.S. in software, they certainly didn't used to be. The program is damaging to U.S. interests, economic and security, but great for foreign interests and the corporate owners who want to hire the cheap labor, here and abroad, and want to spread their influence into India, China, etc.
There are a few little problems with spreading the high-tech / SUV culture everywhere, like vicious wars [probably China], and Global Warming.
Incidentally, this latest H1-B increase was apparently caused by a huge lobbying effort by Microsoft, and Congressional staffers have referred to it as the Bill Gates Act.
This was covered in Scientific American recently. Gibbs cites heat dissipation as the biggest problem driving the switch to multi-cores. He believes the biggest problem with multi-cores is that subtle differences in timing may make the machines non-determinant. Errors might not be reproducible - a nightmare for software development.
http://www.sciamdigital.com/browse.cfm?sequencen am eCHAR=item2&methodnameCHAR=resource_getitembrowse& interfacenameCHAR=browse.cfm&ISSUEID_CHAR=7935C8F4 -2B35-221B-61F1030A5C6B32EF&ARTICLEID_CHAR=79582E6 0-2B35-221B-65202F4C0007E42C&sc=I100322
A Split at the Core; November 2004; by W. Wayt Gibbs; 5 page(s)
It was never a question of whether, but only of when and why. When would microprocessor manufacturers be forced to slow the primary propulsive force for their industry--namely, the biennial release of new chips with much smaller transistors and much higher clock speeds that has made it so attractive for computer users to periodically trade up to a faster machine? And would it be fundamental physics or simple economics that raised the barrier to further scaling? The answers are: in 2004, and for both reasons.
Production difficulties bedeviled almost every major semiconductor firm this year, but none were more apparent than the travails of Intel, the flagship of the microchip business. The company delayed the release of "Prescott," a faster version of its Pentium 4 processor, by more than six months as it worked out glitches in the fabrication of the 125-million-transistor chip. When Prescott did finally arrive, analysts were generally unimpressed by its performance, which was only marginally superior to the previous, 55-million-transistor Pentium 4. The company recalled defective batches of another microchip, postponed the introduction of new notebook processors, and pushed to next year a four-gigahertz Pentium model that it had promised to deliver this autumn.
I haven't seen the games, but this is an obvious hoax by Short and others. Rumors were abounding about Fischer so they made him appear.
When I was playing about twenty years ago there was a fad of opening f3, kf2, ke3, kf4, kg6, kf2 as early as possible in speed games. The object was to demonstrate how incredibly bad your opponent was, when he couldn't beat you after that farce of moves.
When Short was about to play Kasparov for the world title, he said (approximately) his opponent:
1) Had an unpleasant personality.
2) Couldn't get along with normal people.
3) Looked like an ape.
Short likes to jerk the chain.
[When Kasparov was informed of Short's comments he said that was good, Short was trying to build up the gate, like at a Heavyweight Boxing Championship.]
I recently read your speech to the Austin Software Council on the Greenhouse Effect, and the virtues of clean energy. You tell 'em! The brave new world economy crowd (Wired...) don't seem to want to hear about any potential flies in the ointment of their glorious future of growth.
But I fear that conservation measures will not be enough if the underlying problem of population growth isn't addressed. And in the U.S. that means immigration. What better place to take a stand than against the unprincipled ripoff of American programmers & engineers - the H1-B program. Foreign programmers are imported by the hundreds of thousands for a feigned shortage, driving down wages and forcing programmers out of the field. e.g.
This so some super rich can indulge their obsession with chasing Bill Gates, himself the number one supporter of H1-B.
Taking on immigration will make you unpopular in some circles (e.g., conservatives & liberals.) But while some people of conscience will use clean energy, you may have noticed that our SUVs are not getting any smaller, as the remaining oil is pumped from the ground to the air. (Coming next year, the Ford Exterminator, built on an authentic surplus Russian tank chassis! Safety Feature: in the event of an unfortunate collision with your neighbor, you are guaranteed to squash him like a bug!)
Are you ready to lead us from bondage, o cybersage, to the promised land... or what?
I think Python is a great choice! It is a useful language, including for the Internet, and yet it can be quite simple for beginners. It has an internal consistency and clarity. In giving up the efficiencies of C/C++ (what I program in), it is able to ditch a lot of adhoc, illogical baggage.
I really like its access to its "self," and I think in the long run, intelligent programs will need to be able to read and write their own code. Not because self-reflection is the key to consciousness, but because that's where the logic is kept.
The Deeper Blue chess program that beat Kasparov would be utterly lost if asked what "game" means. That knowledge is buried in the code.
OTOH, I do not want a 200 page manual with my next washing machine to produce the perfect suds. My non-programmer friends and neighbors need it even less.
Slashdot Mirror
I'm sorry, but with so many experienced American programmers and engineers unemployed or underemployed, I don't see the benefit of bringing many more permanent workers into the pool from abroad.
The U.S. deliberately produces way too many technical PhDs, with the result that graduates spend years as relatively low-payed post-docs, and have extreme difficulty getting suitable permanent positions.
I think qualified Americans, many of whom are ethnically Chinese or Indian, should have first shot at what jobs exist.
It's just amazing that the lawyer-politicians who set up all these visa programs somehow always forget to bring in foreign lawyers along with the techies. Salaries for lawyers have sky-rocketed, and I would advise any young person to look at a career there before any technical field.
I'm also unclear on the value of transferring our most valuable technical knowledge to China, surely our number one potential enemy in the future. Bill Gates is certainly keen on it, and of course just had the Chinese premier over for a nice dinner.
Doc
Apple has never been a huge H1-B backer, but Bill Gates is MR. H1-B. He's now lobbying Congress to allow in almost unlimited numbers of foreign programmers - anyone with an American Masters degree, e.g. How they will flock! What Bill wants, Congress rushes to do, and Bill has always loved flocking American programmers!
s / (may require your sitting through a sponsor's animated ad)
...
Doc
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/05/26/visa
What's good for Bill Gates...
The Microsoft mogul says America needs more foreign engineers and programmers to compete. Critics say it's all about cheap labor.
By Rebecca Clarren
Salon Magazine
Generally, industry lobbyists are quick with statistics and reports, but in this case it appears they weren't needed. Neither Microsoft nor Intel would reveal how many Ph.D.s or master's students they hired last year, and how many they need for next year. When the companies and their lobbyists were asked what data and reports they showed Congress to convince them of the need for these new visas, they reported that they don't have any reports and statistics. Marcus Courtney, president of WashTech/CWA, a tech workers union, says as long as they have Bill Gates on their side, "they don't need to use anything to substantiate their arguments."
"William Gates was in Washington, lobbying -- a pretty high-priced lobbyist -- to come talk about the needs of Microsoft, a marvelous company, high-tech, enormous advances for America -- he wants more people with Ph.D.s and wants a larger quota of visas for those people to come in," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the bill's author, told Salon when asked what data the industry had shown him. "We have accommodated that. And we have created more opportunities for people to come in who are students."
Such ardor for Gates flows from both sides of the aisle. When asked about reports and data presented to convince Democrats on the Judiciary Committee that the U.S. didn't have the workforce it needed to fill these jobs, Tracy Schmaler, spokesperson for the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, responded: "Did you know Bill Gates has been pretty high-profile on this?"
Critics of the bill, mainly academics and those who represent American tech workers, say they have no voice on this issue; that Congress has been blinded by campaign contributions of big companies. In 2004, Microsoft alone spent $9.46 million on lobbying and hired 16 different firms; it listed immigration as one of its top issues on lobbying disclosure forms, according to data from the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics. That same year, computer and Internet industries spent $70.5 million on lobbying.
"There is no greater case study to understand corporate power in politics," says Courtney of the tech workers union. "I could give you 75 reports that prove that H-1B is a horribly flawed program that hurts American workers, but it doesn't matter. As long as Bill Gates says there's a shortage, and that's it, thanks for playing, game over, try again next session."
Rather OT, but I'm unable to submit stories [from Win XP], hope someone will find this worth submitting. How 'the system' works to help Bill produce huge systems without running out of money - cheap labor.
s / (may require your sitting through a sponsor's animated ad)
...
Doc
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/05/26/visa
What's good for Bill Gates...
The Microsoft mogul says America needs more foreign engineers and programmers to compete. Critics say it's all about cheap labor.
By Rebecca Clarren
Salon Magazine
Generally, industry lobbyists are quick with statistics and reports, but in this case it appears they weren't needed. Neither Microsoft nor Intel would reveal how many Ph.D.s or master's students they hired last year, and how many they need for next year. When the companies and their lobbyists were asked what data and reports they showed Congress to convince them of the need for these new visas, they reported that they don't have any reports and statistics. Marcus Courtney, president of WashTech/CWA, a tech workers union, says as long as they have Bill Gates on their side, "they don't need to use anything to substantiate their arguments."
"William Gates was in Washington, lobbying -- a pretty high-priced lobbyist -- to come talk about the needs of Microsoft, a marvelous company, high-tech, enormous advances for America -- he wants more people with Ph.D.s and wants a larger quota of visas for those people to come in," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the bill's author, told Salon when asked what data the industry had shown him. "We have accommodated that. And we have created more opportunities for people to come in who are students."
Such ardor for Gates flows from both sides of the aisle. When asked about reports and data presented to convince Democrats on the Judiciary Committee that the U.S. didn't have the workforce it needed to fill these jobs, Tracy Schmaler, spokesperson for the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, responded: "Did you know Bill Gates has been pretty high-profile on this?"
Critics of the bill, mainly academics and those who represent American tech workers, say they have no voice on this issue; that Congress has been blinded by campaign contributions of big companies. In 2004, Microsoft alone spent $9.46 million on lobbying and hired 16 different firms; it listed immigration as one of its top issues on lobbying disclosure forms, according to data from the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics. That same year, computer and Internet industries spent $70.5 million on lobbying.
"There is no greater case study to understand corporate power in politics," says Courtney of the tech workers union. "I could give you 75 reports that prove that H-1B is a horribly flawed program that hurts American workers, but it doesn't matter. As long as Bill Gates says there's a shortage, and that's it, thanks for playing, game over, try again next session."
Sorry, but I can't suggest stories apparently due to my strange OS [Win XP ]
9 .html?mod=home_whats_news_us
...
You mention Linux; someone should tell the boys to post this story:
$$
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB11315798499469287
Linux Backers Form Network To Buy Software Patents
New Nonprofit Company, Funded by IBM and Others, Aims to Reduce Legal Risks
By DON CLARK
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
November 10, 2005
Five big backers of Linux are funding an effort to buy up related software patents, the latest in a series of efforts to reduce legal risks that could impede the wider use of the operating system.
A new nonprofit company, called Open Invention Network, is receiving an undisclosed amount of money from International Business Machines Corp., Sony Corp., Philips Electronics NV, Novell Inc. and Red Hat Inc. It plans to buy Linux-related patents, offering royalty-free licenses to companies and individuals that pledge not to assert their own patents against the network's other licensees.
Patents are often cited as a threat for users of Linux and other "open source" programs, which take their name from shared programming instructions called source code that companies once routinely kept secret. Such software often uses code contributed by many organizations, making it difficult to ensure that parts of programs don't violate software patents.
Patent suits over Linux have been scarce. The possibility remains that patent holders could try to compel sellers or users of such software to pay royalties.
Microsoft Corp. has indirectly used patent risks of open-source software in its marketing, stressing that it offers indemnification from patent suits for users of its competing products.
Besides the threat of potential patent suits from companies that create their own products, Linux backers cite the danger from what are sometimes called "trolls" -- companies that have no other business than acquiring patents and charging companies for using them.
JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER
/. since they apparently dump all attempted contributions from Win XP users, a bug that is not being addressed currently according to their bug list. - The wrong way to attack Microsoft, IMHO.
by Rob Sanchez
October 21, 2005 No. 1352
---
Today I talked to Roy Beck of NumbersUSA to get some inside information about why the Senate Judiciary approved more H-1B and green card visas. He said the word is out in Washington DC that this was the result of intense lobbying by Microsoft. Last week lobbyists from Microsoft went to every Congressional office to lobby for more visas. Some people on Capitol Hill are actually referring to the Senate proposal as the "Bill Gates" bill.
---
My source for the "Bill Gates Act" is this "Job Destruction Newsletter," sent out to a free e-mail list by Rob Sanchez. Although the Newsletter is archived at his web site:
http://www.zazona.com/
This recent one is not there yet.
Rob got his information from Roy Beck:
http://www.numbersusa.com/index
Prof. Norman Matloff of Univ of Calif.
http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/itaa.html
also sent this information out to his free e-mail list.
I consider all of these people reliable and well-informed, in contrast to the pro-industry propaganda found in MSM [Main Stream Media].
I can't suggest stories to
I would be grateful if you or someone would attempt to post this info, and even more the following time-critical info [e-mail from Norm Matloff: ]
---
To: programmer mailing list
I urge you to call and express your opinion, pro or con. (Obviously I support Byrd on this issue.)
Yes, CALL. And make sure you talk to someone who handles immigration, NOT whoever answers the phone.
The sample message below is far too complicated. CONGRESS DOESN'T CARE ABOUT REASONING OR LOGIC; all they understand is pressure. Keep your message short, just a couple of sentences. But make sure they understand that you feel STRONGLY about this issue.
Norm
----- Forwarded message from Sandra Gunn
Date: Tue, 1 Nov 2005 13:15:55 -0800 (PST)
From: Sandra Gunn
Reply-To: Sandra Gunn
To: matloff@cs.ucdavis.edu
Subject: URGENT ALERT! Senate Voting Tommorrow on Amdt to Stop Foreign Worker/Immigration Increase
URGENT ALERT FROM FAIR!
Senate Voting Tomorrow on Amendment to Strip Foreign Worker/Immigration Increase from Deficit Reduction Bill
Call your Senators Immediately and Urge a YES Vote for the
Byrd Amendment
THIS JUST IN...Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) has decided to offer an amendment tomorrow to the Deficit Reduction Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 2005 (S. 1932) that will strip out language added by the Judiciary Committee that sells out American workers by expanding employment-based visas, H-1B high tech worker visas and accompanying family members by an estimated 368,000 per year.
PLEASE CALL YOUR SENATORS IMMEDIATELY AND URGE A YES VOTE FOR THE BYRD AMENDMENT.
This will come up tomorrow, so we have less than 24 hours
to make an impact. If you call during business hours, ask to speak with or leave a message for the legislative assistant handling immigration. If calling after business hours, please leave a message on your senators' voicemail.
Call the Capitol
Switchboard (202-224-3121) and ask to be connected, or find direct phone numbers on our web site at
http://capwiz.com/fair/dbq/officials/
Americans who oppose this should contact your Senators and Congressperson and let them know, preferably by phone.
They are afraid of public pressure. This is being done as stealth as possible with little news coverage in the major papers, and being hidden in some big budget bill.
I saw a recent survey where 84% of the people responding said the U.S. Government is not doing enough to protect American jobs from going overseas. If people really understood that they are bringing in foreigners to take the jobs here they would be real upset.
The American establishment is greatly in favor of this program and tries to sneak it thru. Politicians want to curry favor [no pun intended] with corporations so they get those lovely no-work Corporate Board seats when they retire.
In his last years with AOL, e.g., Alexander Haig, former Secretary of State, was pulling down about $30 million a year in stock option grants. More recent board members included Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice, until called away by higher duties.
H1-B is the single biggest reason that India and other countries are now competive with the U.S. in software, they certainly didn't used to be. The program is damaging to U.S. interests, economic and security, but great for foreign interests and the corporate owners who want to hire the cheap labor, here and abroad, and want to spread their influence into India, China, etc.
There are a few little problems with spreading the high-tech / SUV culture everywhere, like vicious wars [probably China], and Global Warming.
Incidentally, this latest H1-B increase was apparently caused by a huge lobbying effort by Microsoft, and Congressional staffers have referred to it as the Bill Gates Act.
This was covered in Scientific American recently. Gibbs cites heat dissipation as the biggest problem driving the switch to multi-cores. He believes the biggest problem with multi-cores is that subtle differences in timing may make the machines non-determinant. Errors might not be reproducible - a nightmare for software development.
n am eCHAR=item2&methodnameCHAR=resource_getitembrowse& interfacenameCHAR=browse.cfm&ISSUEID_CHAR=7935C8F4 -2B35-221B-61F1030A5C6B32EF&ARTICLEID_CHAR=79582E6 0-2B35-221B-65202F4C0007E42C&sc=I100322
http://www.sciamdigital.com/browse.cfm?sequence
A Split at the Core; November 2004; by W. Wayt Gibbs; 5 page(s)
It was never a question of whether, but only of when and why. When would microprocessor manufacturers be forced to slow the primary propulsive force for their industry--namely, the biennial release of new chips with much smaller transistors and much higher clock speeds that has made it so attractive for computer users to periodically trade up to a faster machine? And would it be fundamental physics or simple economics that raised the barrier to further scaling? The answers are: in 2004, and for both reasons.
Production difficulties bedeviled almost every major semiconductor firm this year, but none were more apparent than the travails of Intel, the flagship of the microchip business. The company delayed the release of "Prescott," a faster version of its Pentium 4 processor, by more than six months as it worked out glitches in the fabrication of the 125-million-transistor chip. When Prescott did finally arrive, analysts were generally unimpressed by its performance, which was only marginally superior to the previous, 55-million-transistor Pentium 4. The company recalled defective batches of another microchip, postponed the introduction of new notebook processors, and pushed to next year a four-gigahertz Pentium model that it had promised to deliver this autumn.
[ $$ for more ]
I haven't seen the games, but this is an obvious hoax by Short and others. Rumors were abounding about Fischer so they made him appear.
When I was playing about twenty years ago there was a fad of opening f3, kf2, ke3, kf4, kg6, kf2 as early as possible in speed games. The object was to demonstrate how incredibly bad your opponent was, when he couldn't beat you after that farce of moves.
When Short was about to play Kasparov for the world title, he said (approximately) his opponent:
1) Had an unpleasant personality.
2) Couldn't get along with normal people.
3) Looked like an ape.
Short likes to jerk the chain.
[When Kasparov was informed of Short's comments he said that was good, Short was trying to build up the gate, like at a Heavyweight Boxing Championship.]
Doc
I recently read your speech to the Austin Software Council on the Greenhouse Effect, and the virtues of clean energy. You tell 'em! The brave new world economy crowd (Wired
But I fear that conservation measures will not be enough if the underlying problem of population growth isn't addressed. And in the U.S. that means immigration. What better place to take a stand than against the unprincipled ripoff of American programmers & engineers - the H1-B program. Foreign programmers are imported by the hundreds of thousands for a feigned shortage, driving down wages and forcing programmers out of the field. e.g.
http://slashdot.org/articles/99/08/03/1126238_F
This so some super rich can indulge their obsession with chasing Bill Gates, himself the number one supporter of H1-B.
Taking on immigration will make you unpopular in some circles (e.g., conservatives & liberals.) But while some people of conscience will use clean energy, you may have noticed that our SUVs are not getting any smaller, as the remaining oil is pumped from the ground to the air. (Coming next year, the Ford Exterminator, built on an authentic surplus Russian tank chassis! Safety Feature: in the event of an unfortunate collision with your neighbor, you are guaranteed to squash him like a bug!)
Are you ready to lead us from bondage, o cybersage, to the promised land
Doc Bones
I think Python is a great choice! It is a useful language, including for the Internet, and yet it can be quite simple for beginners. It has an internal consistency and clarity. In giving up the efficiencies of C/C++ (what I program in), it is able to ditch a lot of adhoc, illogical baggage.
I really like its access to its "self," and I think in the long run, intelligent programs will need to be able to read and write their own code. Not because self-reflection is the key to consciousness, but because that's where the logic is kept.
The Deeper Blue chess program that beat Kasparov would be utterly lost if asked what "game" means. That knowledge is buried in the code.
OTOH, I do not want a 200 page manual with my next washing machine to produce the perfect suds. My non-programmer friends and neighbors need it even less.
Doc