No, no. You've got it all wrong. The Mafia-type drug bosses have figured out that it is in their best interests to keep people healthy and out of the doctor's office. Because they realize that they are in direct competition with the other drug lords in town.
Here in anchorage alaska, pretty much every biking fatality is the result of a drunk driver, and usually also a hit a run. Not sure how that holds up nationally, but it might be worth seeing how duis correlate.
In Anchorage, pretty much everything is a result of a drunk driver. Not much else is going on there.
I suppose you could call it a 'conspiracy' since there are people clearly conspiring to get the priorities they feel important funded. Most people would call it 'politics as usual'. And yes, the recipe calls for pork, lots and lots of it. Not very healthy, but very tasty. Humans will typically go for what tastes good, not what is good for you.
Sweden and the United States give asylum to about the same number of refugees every year. Not per capita, but in absolute numbers. Also, the US gives 0.19% of their gross national income to foreign aid, compared to 1.02% of the above example.
It's the usual scenario. USA creates a big mess, other countries are stuck in it or have to clean it up.
And the US funds 22% of UN operating needs. Then it's Japan (19%), Germany (9.8%), France and the UK. That rounds out the top 10.
Sweden isn't in there. Neither is Saudi Arabia (sitting on piles of cash and basically a neighbor), neither is Russia (who contributes mightily to the Syrian war effort).
You should spend some quality time understanding how the world works. It's complicated.
The federal government bought and paid for Alaska, why should the people who live there be the only ones to benefit from the exploitation of its natural resources?
You do benefit from the natural resources. Who do you think uses the Prudhoe Bay oil, eats the Bristol Bay salmon and wipes their butt on paper made from Alaskan trees? (Yeah, the Japanese eat the herring roe but that's because nobody else will).
And the Permanent Fund has never paid out $3000. The $1800 paid out in 2013 (I think) was the highest. Unless you're correcting for inflation, you're inflating the numbers.
Many, but not all, Alaskan Natives get regular dividends from the various businesses and resources controlled by the native consortia (not tribes). All Alaskan residents get a dividend from the Permanent Fund (unless it has been garnished). Most Native Alaskans get both. For many natives, those two funding sources constitute the majority of their income.
Well, gee, then where are my royalty checks from the copper extracted form the ground here in Arizona? No this was a specific carve out for those rugged individualist conservatives in Alaska, who then come to the continental US to lecture us about seeing Putin from their back yard and the evils of the welfare society. Also about how the internet is a set of tubes that we clog with our illegal downloads or something.
Ha Ha. We gave Sarah to you guys. Maybe she can work out another Permanent Fund deal.
And old Uncle Teddy is dead. That's why we're in this mess. Ted Stevens pushed more Federal money into Alaska then we got from the Permanent Fund. He was a pretty cheap date. A couple of million dollars and you get a Senate vote and those couple of million go pretty far in a state with a population less than some eastern counties. Much cheaper than trying to buy out somebody on the lower 48.
The bizarre thing about the dividend is how holy it is. People here seem to think that everyone is entitled to free money from their government, not that it's an aberration for a state to write you a check just because it has some valuable resources.
It's only a matter of time here before the dividend is repealed. We've made a lot of decisions lately (tax wise) that favor the big corps, that have drained income from government/education budgets, and were supposed to, you know, JOBS! The dividend won't stay sustainable with government expenditure.
I live here too and we will both see the end of the Dividend in our lifetimes (unless you have an unfortunate rapidly fatal illness). The state legislature is sitting there like a moose in the headlights waiting for the state economy to come crashing down due to $40 / barrel oil and the decreasing production out of the Prudhoe fields. The only pot of gold left is the Permanent Fund, which won't be so permanent starting next year. They will wait till the bitter end when they start shutting down the roads, police and fire and then people will gladly give their dividend to fund the state. Because that thousand bucks won't do you much good if the infrastructure falls down on its face.
The face saving end run may be a personal income tax of, let's say, $1000. The only advantage of that is it could be sort of progressive. But the state is going to get that money one way or the other.
Alabama tried that. In fact, a lot of Southern states tried that - chain gangs.
Conscripted labor, be it through a jail cell or a welfare roll is shit labor. Not worth the money it takes to supervise them. Besides, most farm jobs are skilled positions. If you're working a $100,000 piece of machinery you don't want the idiot next store who can't even read getting up in the cabin. Even picking vegetables takes a modicum of skill and coordination.
It's a tough pill to swallow but there exists a significant portion of the population that really can't do much of anything productive.
While the level of political discourse usually is just a tad better than on Fox News or Slate, it is probably a good idea that the technologically inclined start thinking about something more relevant than the next processor tick or the personal hygiene of free software zealots.
The real work is complicated and ugly, frustrating and annoying but it is there and most of us will have to deal with at some point.
While in "free market" Russia and China, the rising tide is lifting all boats, from the oligarch to the oil worker? Say what you like about excessive regulation in the US (which clearly exists and we should work on minimizing it), letting businessmen have free reign is anything but a panacea.
Recall that in 'old Italy' (or London or Trenton, NJ) the cities were total pigsties. Horses, pigs, dogs, people crapping all over the place. Running water only in some places. Treated sewage nowhere.
Farms were places of pristine nature, relatively speaking.
You're missing something. What you need to do is buy your kids an Amazon(TM) tablet, park them in from of your Samsung TV and spend the rest of your life working enough hours to pay for the hardware and subscriptions.
Slashdot Mirror
It's the FBI silly. Paypal will give the FBI money - no problemo. They're the good guys.
I'm not sure I get this. Who's walking around with a phone that they're not prepared to wipe at a moment's notice anyway?
Everyone else on the planet.
No, no. You've got it all wrong. The Mafia-type drug bosses have figured out that it is in their best interests to keep people healthy and out of the doctor's office. Because they realize that they are in direct competition with the other drug lords in town.
It's called 'enlightened self interest'.
Are you serious? That stuff has proteins. They call all kinds of trouble.
That's because of the Moor/Muslim excursions and relatively recent.
Well, if you're talking in geological terms, you're correct. Most of us, however, don't consider 1300 + years of Islam history 'recent'.
Man is not a rational animal.
He is a rationalizing animal.
- Heinlein
... do I ever see ANYBODY display even the slightest bit of situational awareness..
Fixed that for you. To be fair, I've never seen a Google car around here. They may be the most advanced life form on the highway at present.
I know! I know! We need self driving bicycles!
Here in anchorage alaska, pretty much every biking fatality is the result of a drunk driver, and usually also a hit a run. Not sure how that holds up nationally, but it might be worth seeing how duis correlate.
In Anchorage, pretty much everything is a result of a drunk driver. Not much else is going on there.
I suppose you could call it a 'conspiracy' since there are people clearly conspiring to get the priorities they feel important funded. Most people would call it 'politics as usual'. And yes, the recipe calls for pork, lots and lots of it. Not very healthy, but very tasty. Humans will typically go for what tastes good, not what is good for you.
Whatever the hell that is.
Sweden and the United States give asylum to about the same number of refugees every year. Not per capita, but in absolute numbers. Also, the US gives 0.19% of their gross national income to foreign aid, compared to 1.02% of the above example.
It's the usual scenario. USA creates a big mess, other countries are stuck in it or have to clean it up.
And the US funds 22% of UN operating needs. Then it's Japan (19%), Germany (9.8%), France and the UK. That rounds out the top 10.
Sweden isn't in there. Neither is Saudi Arabia (sitting on piles of cash and basically a neighbor), neither is Russia (who contributes mightily to the Syrian war effort).
You should spend some quality time understanding how the world works. It's complicated.
The federal government bought and paid for Alaska, why should the people who live there be the only ones to benefit from the exploitation of its natural resources?
You do benefit from the natural resources. Who do you think uses the Prudhoe Bay oil, eats the Bristol Bay salmon and wipes their butt on paper made from Alaskan trees? (Yeah, the Japanese eat the herring roe but that's because nobody else will).
And the Permanent Fund has never paid out $3000. The $1800 paid out in 2013 (I think) was the highest. Unless you're correcting for inflation, you're inflating the numbers.
No, not close. You're confusing the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act with the Permanent Fund.
Many, but not all, Alaskan Natives get regular dividends from the various businesses and resources controlled by the native consortia (not tribes). All Alaskan residents get a dividend from the Permanent Fund (unless it has been garnished). Most Native Alaskans get both. For many natives, those two funding sources constitute the majority of their income.
Several million years ago, most of Alaska split off from Asia. Maybe his geography book is a bit dated.
Well, gee, then where are my royalty checks from the copper extracted form the ground here in Arizona? No this was a specific carve out for those rugged individualist conservatives in Alaska, who then come to the continental US to lecture us about seeing Putin from their back yard and the evils of the welfare society. Also about how the internet is a set of tubes that we clog with our illegal downloads or something.
Ha Ha. We gave Sarah to you guys. Maybe she can work out another Permanent Fund deal.
And old Uncle Teddy is dead. That's why we're in this mess. Ted Stevens pushed more Federal money into Alaska then we got from the Permanent Fund. He was a pretty cheap date. A couple of million dollars and you get a Senate vote and those couple of million go pretty far in a state with a population less than some eastern counties. Much cheaper than trying to buy out somebody on the lower 48.
No, that wasn't Abe Lincoln, it was Groucho Marx.
The bizarre thing about the dividend is how holy it is. People here seem to think that everyone is entitled to free money from their government, not that it's an aberration for a state to write you a check just because it has some valuable resources.
It's only a matter of time here before the dividend is repealed. We've made a lot of decisions lately (tax wise) that favor the big corps, that have drained income from government/education budgets, and were supposed to, you know, JOBS! The dividend won't stay sustainable with government expenditure.
I live here too and we will both see the end of the Dividend in our lifetimes (unless you have an unfortunate rapidly fatal illness). The state legislature is sitting there like a moose in the headlights waiting for the state economy to come crashing down due to $40 / barrel oil and the decreasing production out of the Prudhoe fields. The only pot of gold left is the Permanent Fund, which won't be so permanent starting next year. They will wait till the bitter end when they start shutting down the roads, police and fire and then people will gladly give their dividend to fund the state. Because that thousand bucks won't do you much good if the infrastructure falls down on its face.
The face saving end run may be a personal income tax of, let's say, $1000. The only advantage of that is it could be sort of progressive. But the state is going to get that money one way or the other.
And you really don't want to run into a moose.
Alabama tried that. In fact, a lot of Southern states tried that - chain gangs.
Conscripted labor, be it through a jail cell or a welfare roll is shit labor. Not worth the money it takes to supervise them. Besides, most farm jobs are skilled positions. If you're working a $100,000 piece of machinery you don't want the idiot next store who can't even read getting up in the cabin. Even picking vegetables takes a modicum of skill and coordination.
It's a tough pill to swallow but there exists a significant portion of the population that really can't do much of anything productive.
In a 100 years, people will look back on us and say: WTF were they thinking?
No, in 100 years, people will look at the computer screen (or whatever it is that we're using to show information) and go "Shiny!".
While the level of political discourse usually is just a tad better than on Fox News or Slate, it is probably a good idea that the technologically inclined start thinking about something more relevant than the next processor tick or the personal hygiene of free software zealots.
The real work is complicated and ugly, frustrating and annoying but it is there and most of us will have to deal with at some point.
While in "free market" Russia and China, the rising tide is lifting all boats, from the oligarch to the oil worker? Say what you like about excessive regulation in the US (which clearly exists and we should work on minimizing it), letting businessmen have free reign is anything but a panacea.
In fact, it's fucking disaster.
Recall that in 'old Italy' (or London or Trenton, NJ) the cities were total pigsties. Horses, pigs, dogs, people crapping all over the place. Running water only in some places. Treated sewage nowhere.
Farms were places of pristine nature, relatively speaking.
I think you all have this backwards.
There is actually nothing weird about that.
Yeah there is....
You're missing something. What you need to do is buy your kids an Amazon(TM) tablet, park them in from of your Samsung TV and spend the rest of your life working enough hours to pay for the hardware and subscriptions.
That, my friend, is the New American Dream.
And don't forget that new iPhone for the Missus.