For pure organization, I found IMatch to be absolutely great. While I did switch to Lightroom last year to take advantage of the raw processing workflow, I found the management aspect of IMatch to be much better. (I had used it for 5+ years before the switch.) While it is Windows only and does use a proprietary database in the back, it's quite straightforward to export categories (basically hierarchical keywords) and custom properties into IPTC metadata. There's also a Visual Basic-based scripting engine allowing plugins, either written yourself or from other users.
A database of stolen SSNs could be perfectly open in terms of read access. So a hacker grabs a bunch of the stolen SSNs and gives one to the credit card company/bank/unemployment agency/etc. The cc company/bank/ua/etc. then checks the database to see if the number is stolen. And...they find out it is stolen and then refuse the SSN as valid.
I'm not saying it's a good idea and I also realize there are major write access issues to solve, but read access is no problem.
Supposedly on the INS form for foreigners visiting the US (I'm a US citizen, so this is from my colleagues):
Are you entering the the country for the purpose of committing acts of terrorism?
Answering yes will not necessarily prevent your entry into the US.
This is something that greatly need to be emphasized. Cloning is not replication. Cloning yourself would be like creating the identical twin brother/sister you never had (or, I suppose, another identical sibling). Also, if the cloned embryo is brought to term, you'd still end up with a newborn baby. Is there anyone out there that really believes that (effectively) identical twins reared years (perhaps 30+) apart would grow up anything alike? (Actually, I think using such techniques with other animals, espcially higher social animals like apes, could lead to lots of new ideas about the old nature vs. nurture argument.)
As to the ban, my personal belief is that cloning for "baby production" should be banned while other forms (i.e., for stem-cell production) should be allowed. Bringing the research into the labs of responsible scientists is the best way to minimize the negative uses while maximizing the positive aspects. Believe it or not, the vast majority of scientists in the world are actually responsible, moral people. Another thing that allowing mainstream labs to work on this does is to reduce the motive to get right to cloning for baby production to make enough money to maintain the research.
A few years back National Geographic[1] had a great article of landfill archeology (i.e., digging in landfills using archeological methods to analyze past cultural trends). One thing the researchers were amazed to find was whole, undegraded steaks from the early 70s. Yes...that is whole hunks of meat from 30+ years ago. If these don't degrade, does anyone really believe "biodegradable" CDs (or "plastic" bags) will? Admittedly, this was an anaerobic landfill, but virtually all of them are.
[1]"Once and Future Landfills", National Geopgraphic Magazine, May 1991 (at least I think that's the right reference--I can't check a physical issue at the moment).
As others have said, it's not only the 50 states but many counties and cities have their own tax rates. According to the Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network there's 6,000 sales/use tax jurisdictions in the US. (They do admit that many municipal ones use the same rules as the state.) I also do not know how if works in cases where one would have a mailing address in a taxing city but live outside the city. (It is quite common in Michigan to have such an address.)
Aside from the simple locations, I believe the biggest hurdles will be what is taxed and how. I realize that the states are trying to draw a plan for uniformity, but I have a very hard time believing that certain industries in states will give up their tax exempt status (e.g., clothing). I've even heard of a case in Ohio(?) where fashion scarves are taxed as "nonessential" clothing while scarves to keep warm are exempt as "essential" clothing. (The decision was left up to the local tax enforcers.) So now we have to expect business to track these minute details for 6000 jurisdictions?
Two things:
1) I'm fairly certain that an error in one vote (e.g., voting for 2 candidates for sherriff) would not affect races where votes were chosen correctly.
2) Think about the huge task of tracking, transporting, storing, counting, etc. of the huge numbrers of ballots if each issue was a seperate ballot. I believe someone above mentioned voting for 22 referenda in addition to standard races. Do you really think the government could keep track of 30+ seperate ballots adequately?
Not only FTP, but it seems to me this would also cover the small web forms which Google distributes that allows you to seach from another (other than Google) site. I guess it would depending on the definition of 'software' and 'contents'.
Also, I'm still trying to figure out what a 'third' party is in relation to file uploading/downloading. If I put a file on my web/ftp server and someone downloads it... no problem. Now if someone uploads a file to my server and then someone else downloads it, couldn't this be argued it was me downloading it (hence no third party involved) and then someone else downloaded it directly from me (again, no third party)?
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For pure organization, I found IMatch to be absolutely great. While I did switch to Lightroom last year to take advantage of the raw processing workflow, I found the management aspect of IMatch to be much better. (I had used it for 5+ years before the switch.) While it is Windows only and does use a proprietary database in the back, it's quite straightforward to export categories (basically hierarchical keywords) and custom properties into IPTC metadata. There's also a Visual Basic-based scripting engine allowing plugins, either written yourself or from other users.
I'm not saying it's a good idea and I also realize there are major write access issues to solve, but read access is no problem.
Supposedly on the INS form for foreigners visiting the US (I'm a US citizen, so this is from my colleagues):
Are you entering the the country for the purpose of committing acts of terrorism?
Answering yes will not necessarily prevent your entry into the US.
As to the ban, my personal belief is that cloning for "baby production" should be banned while other forms (i.e., for stem-cell production) should be allowed. Bringing the research into the labs of responsible scientists is the best way to minimize the negative uses while maximizing the positive aspects. Believe it or not, the vast majority of scientists in the world are actually responsible, moral people. Another thing that allowing mainstream labs to work on this does is to reduce the motive to get right to cloning for baby production to make enough money to maintain the research.
[1]"Once and Future Landfills", National Geopgraphic Magazine, May 1991 (at least I think that's the right reference--I can't check a physical issue at the moment).
Aside from the simple locations, I believe the biggest hurdles will be what is taxed and how. I realize that the states are trying to draw a plan for uniformity, but I have a very hard time believing that certain industries in states will give up their tax exempt status (e.g., clothing). I've even heard of a case in Ohio(?) where fashion scarves are taxed as "nonessential" clothing while scarves to keep warm are exempt as "essential" clothing. (The decision was left up to the local tax enforcers.) So now we have to expect business to track these minute details for 6000 jurisdictions?
Two things: 1) I'm fairly certain that an error in one vote (e.g., voting for 2 candidates for sherriff) would not affect races where votes were chosen correctly. 2) Think about the huge task of tracking, transporting, storing, counting, etc. of the huge numbrers of ballots if each issue was a seperate ballot. I believe someone above mentioned voting for 22 referenda in addition to standard races. Do you really think the government could keep track of 30+ seperate ballots adequately?
Also, I'm still trying to figure out what a 'third' party is in relation to file uploading/downloading. If I put a file on my web/ftp server and someone downloads it ... no problem. Now if someone uploads a file to my server and then someone else downloads it, couldn't this be argued it was me downloading it (hence no third party involved) and then someone else downloaded it directly from me (again, no third party)?