Democracy comes in 2 flavors:
1. direct democracy: citizens vote directly on the laws themselves. examples: ancient Greece, California.
2. representative democracy: citizens elect representatives to determine laws. synonym: republic. examples: India, Canada, Indonesia, Chile, United States of America.
1. election day surprises. Last time around, people in West Virginia, Minnesota, and Oregon all thought they lived in rock solid blue states that couldn't possibly be close. West Virginia wound up going republican, while Gore came within less than a percent of losing Oregon and Minnesota because of the huge Nader vote in those states. Don't assume because you live in Michigan or Hawaii or even California that your vote won't have an effect.
2. the popular vote still matters. If you want real policy changes, the president elect must have not only the presidency but also have legitimacy, a mandate to carry out their agenda. True, either candidate could become president without the popular vote, but he would either be ineffective or worse, a poisonous, polarizing figure like Bush.
Here's the wierd thing about the American academic medical system:
Fact 1: American doctors, particularly rural family doctors, are in shortage. Fact 2: It is hard as hell to get into American medical schools (admission rates at the better schools are in the low single digits; at mediocre schools they are in the teens) Fact 3: There are thousands of immigrant doctors driving taxi cabs.
Canada's health problems are not unique. America has most of the same problems, except waiting lists (oh wait, those are showing up too), plus high cost and litigation, without the benefits (lower cost/universal coverage). I realize that health care in Canada sucks; it's just that down here it sucks and costs 3 times as much.
America has invested huge sums into curing rare diseases, but hasn't paid enough attention to basic health. As a result, we have the most advanced techniques for, say, separating siamese twins, but TB is making a comeback and there's a shortage of flu vaccine.
Los Angeles and Sacramento are smoggy, as well as some smaller cities in the Central Valley (esp. Fresno and Bakersfield). San Francisco, San Jose, and San Diego, however, are not particularly smoggy. I would say (based on only 18 days I have spent there over my lifetime) that London is comparable to Sacramento in smog, though you should realize the average summer high in Sacramento is 34C. London gets really nasty when it's that hot.
Please do not confuse greenhouse emissions with the smog-forming pollutants mentioned in the article. The US has made no attempt to regulate the former (state of California excepted) but strictly regulates the former under the Clean Air Acts of 1970 and 1990 (the ones Bush wants to weaken with his "Clear Skies Initiative").
The US does have fairly strict emmisions laws (hence the small number of diesels). Any Americans who have traveled to Europe in the summer months will notice that they often have higher smog. London and Rome are especially nasty.
Trust me, there will not be a supply shortage. The manufacturing cost per copy is very low. You will not get your copy ANY sooner by preordering. You are only providing a no-interest advance to the publisher.
In the last week, there has been a spin war going on between the campaigns about whether Allawi is a US puppet. I'd like to know what most of you guys think: is he independent, sort of independent, or a puppet. I'm especially interested in what non-Americans think.
3 big obstacles exist to moving from gasoline to hydrogen:
1. lack of infrastructure for distribution
2. cost of fuel cells
3. hydrogen being a gas at room temperature
The solution to the first two problems is straightforward. The first just requires building a network of hydrogen fueling stations. The second will be solved by volume production, or by hydrogen burning ICEs. The third, however is a real problem. It will be very difficult to achieve a 500km driving range from hydrogen without some radical solution for storing it aboard the car. Right now, it must be stored either liquified at extremely low temperatures, or as a compressed gas, and both methods require car owners to give up their trunk. An alternative may be to absorb the hydrogen into some chemical, perhaps a metal hydride. These can store enough hydrogen, but are too heavy for cars.
On the other hand, drivers in urban areas may be willing to give up their long driving range, provided that hydrogen is otherwise economical.
A hydrogen car that uses an ICE misses the whole point. It doesn't improve efficiency much, given that it is still limited by the thermal efficiency of a heat engine. Moreover, although burning hydrogen doesn't produce carbon emmisions, producing hydrogen does. Finally, the higher combustion temperature increases the formation of NOx pollutants.
The reason for all the effort to create a new hydrogen fueling infrastructure is to take advantage of fuel cells/electric motors. A car with a hydrogen burning ICE is just an ordinary car that you can't refill at a gas station.
Actually, the 5:2:1 price ratio of high end, midrange, and low end gaming cards corresponds quite nicely to the price ratio of a Ford GT, Corvette Z06, and Ford Mustang. (Europeans: substitute 360 Modena, BMW M3, and Ford Focus RS as desired)
Of course, for those of you who prefer the used Hyundai, an Intel Extreme 3d adds but $10 to your computer's price.
[flamebait] Sure there is. For one, he is nuts. [/flamebait]
On a less flamebaity note, I object to his views on the electoral college. I really cannot understand the objections to direct election through the popular vote. This seems much simpler, and unless someone can offer a compelling argument for the more complicated system, the simpler way is usually better. Moreover, direct elections would greatly help third parties.
[flamebait] The main argument for the electoral college is that it preserves the idea of the president being chosen by the states. This is transparently stupid. In fact, most supporters of the college probably consider it a backdoor for God to insert unpopular conservatives in office. [/flamebait]
PS > and < seem to show up wrong so I used [ and ] instead. How do you get around this?
The fact that you consider the New Republic left-of-center speaks volumes about your politics. Most Democrats (rank-and-filers, not idiot DNC consultants) can't stand TNR's foreign policy.
Conservatives: please do not take the New Republic as representative of left-of-center views. It is not.
For your left wing fix, consider Counterpunch. For something moderate, take a look at The Nation or the columnists for Salon.
PS Any slashdot story that includes the word "Bush" (notwithstanding those discussing plantlife) is flamebait and should probably go on flamebait central.
My fellow slashdotters, please don't preorder software. Trust me, you won't get it any earlier than the guys who run to Fry's. In fact, preorderers will probably get their copies after Fry's, since there is a shipping delay.
Preorders are useful only when you can expect a supply shortage when something comes out. Such supply shortages are usually due to a combination of unexpected demand and limited production capacity. Game CDs, however, are very easy to manufacture, and given that demand for HL2 is already expected, you won't experience supply shortages.
Basically, a software preorder is a short-term, interest free loan that you are giving the vendor. It will not make the software arrive on your computer any sooner.
Give me a break. Castro hasn't stopped torturing and murdering his enemies. Yeah, what the US is doing to prisoners violates the Geneva Convention, but they're all walking out with their body parts intact and alive, which is still a lot better than a lot of people get in places like Cuba.
This is not entirely true. A number of the pictures show prisoners that have been severely beaten. One picture showed a prisoner that had been stuffed in a body bag packed with ice; the photo showed the man after he died.
Three prisoners in Afghanistan have been killed during interogation (the investigations are ongoing after 18 months), two at Army bases and a third at a CIA facility on the Pakistan border. There are also at least 25 cases of Iraqi prisoners dying in US custody, 13 of them under suspicious circumstances.
On Meet the Press, Republican senator Lindsey Graham pointed out, "This is not just about humiliation, Tim. The allegations in this report involve rape and murder. Please, don't leave this whole scenario thinking that this is just about a humiliating experience. This is about system failure. This is about felony offenses."
Granted, the abuses in the US run Iraqi prisons do not match those under Saddam. They are worse, however, than most Middle Eastern countries.
Slashdot Mirror
Democracy comes in 2 flavors: 1. direct democracy: citizens vote directly on the laws themselves. examples: ancient Greece, California. 2. representative democracy: citizens elect representatives to determine laws. synonym: republic. examples: India, Canada, Indonesia, Chile, United States of America.
1. election day surprises. Last time around, people in West Virginia, Minnesota, and Oregon all thought they lived in rock solid blue states that couldn't possibly be close. West Virginia wound up going republican, while Gore came within less than a percent of losing Oregon and Minnesota because of the huge Nader vote in those states. Don't assume because you live in Michigan or Hawaii or even California that your vote won't have an effect.
2. the popular vote still matters. If you want real policy changes, the president elect must have not only the presidency but also have legitimacy, a mandate to carry out their agenda. True, either candidate could become president without the popular vote, but he would either be ineffective or worse, a poisonous, polarizing figure like Bush.
Fact 1: American doctors, particularly rural family doctors, are in shortage.
Fact 2: It is hard as hell to get into American medical schools (admission rates at the better schools are in the low single digits; at mediocre schools they are in the teens)
Fact 3: There are thousands of immigrant doctors driving taxi cabs.
Canada's health problems are not unique. America has most of the same problems, except waiting lists (oh wait, those are showing up too), plus high cost and litigation, without the benefits (lower cost/universal coverage). I realize that health care in Canada sucks; it's just that down here it sucks and costs 3 times as much.
America has invested huge sums into curing rare diseases, but hasn't paid enough attention to basic health. As a result, we have the most advanced techniques for, say, separating siamese twins, but TB is making a comeback and there's a shortage of flu vaccine.
Exactly.
This is why you see people with small intellects and large waistlines.
Any Amish /.ers willing to back this up?
Los Angeles and Sacramento are smoggy, as well as some smaller cities in the Central Valley (esp. Fresno and Bakersfield). San Francisco, San Jose, and San Diego, however, are not particularly smoggy. I would say (based on only 18 days I have spent there over my lifetime) that London is comparable to Sacramento in smog, though you should realize the average summer high in Sacramento is 34C. London gets really nasty when it's that hot. Please do not confuse greenhouse emissions with the smog-forming pollutants mentioned in the article. The US has made no attempt to regulate the former (state of California excepted) but strictly regulates the former under the Clean Air Acts of 1970 and 1990 (the ones Bush wants to weaken with his "Clear Skies Initiative").
emissions. lo siento
The US does have fairly strict emmisions laws (hence the small number of diesels). Any Americans who have traveled to Europe in the summer months will notice that they often have higher smog. London and Rome are especially nasty.
Trust me, there will not be a supply shortage. The manufacturing cost per copy is very low. You will not get your copy ANY sooner by preordering. You are only providing a no-interest advance to the publisher.
silly slashdotter. you need the hyperlink in order to karma whore.
In the last week, there has been a spin war going on between the campaigns about whether Allawi is a US puppet. I'd like to know what most of you guys think: is he independent, sort of independent, or a puppet. I'm especially interested in what non-Americans think.
55, mi amigo
1. lack of infrastructure for distribution
2. cost of fuel cells
3. hydrogen being a gas at room temperature
The solution to the first two problems is straightforward. The first just requires building a network of hydrogen fueling stations. The second will be solved by volume production, or by hydrogen burning ICEs. The third, however is a real problem. It will be very difficult to achieve a 500km driving range from hydrogen without some radical solution for storing it aboard the car. Right now, it must be stored either liquified at extremely low temperatures, or as a compressed gas, and both methods require car owners to give up their trunk. An alternative may be to absorb the hydrogen into some chemical, perhaps a metal hydride. These can store enough hydrogen, but are too heavy for cars.
On the other hand, drivers in urban areas may be willing to give up their long driving range, provided that hydrogen is otherwise economical.
A hydrogen car that uses an ICE misses the whole point. It doesn't improve efficiency much, given that it is still limited by the thermal efficiency of a heat engine. Moreover, although burning hydrogen doesn't produce carbon emmisions, producing hydrogen does. Finally, the higher combustion temperature increases the formation of NOx pollutants.
The reason for all the effort to create a new hydrogen fueling infrastructure is to take advantage of fuel cells/electric motors. A car with a hydrogen burning ICE is just an ordinary car that you can't refill at a gas station.
Actually, the 5:2:1 price ratio of high end, midrange, and low end gaming cards corresponds quite nicely to the price ratio of a Ford GT, Corvette Z06, and Ford Mustang. (Europeans: substitute 360 Modena, BMW M3, and Ford Focus RS as desired) Of course, for those of you who prefer the used Hyundai, an Intel Extreme 3d adds but $10 to your computer's price.
By the way, the woman doctor (Barthwell, I think) was also black, and no one had ever heard of her, either.
That argument is ridiculous. Even in direct elections the guy from Peoria still has a vote with the same value as the guy from New York.
Moreover, why should someone from Anchorage have their vote weighted more heavily than someone from Potter Valley, CA?
[flamebait]
Sure there is. For one, he is nuts.
[/flamebait]
On a less flamebaity note, I object to his views on the electoral college. I really cannot understand the objections to direct election through the popular vote. This seems much simpler, and unless someone can offer a compelling argument for the more complicated system, the simpler way is usually better. Moreover, direct elections would greatly help third parties.
[flamebait]
The main argument for the electoral college is that it preserves the idea of the president being chosen by the states. This is transparently stupid. In fact, most supporters of the college probably consider it a backdoor for God to insert unpopular conservatives in office.
[/flamebait]
PS > and < seem to show up wrong so I used [ and ] instead. How do you get around this?
The fact that you consider the New Republic left-of-center speaks volumes about your politics. Most Democrats (rank-and-filers, not idiot DNC consultants) can't stand TNR's foreign policy.
Conservatives: please do not take the New Republic as representative of left-of-center views. It is not.
For your left wing fix, consider Counterpunch. For something moderate, take a look at The Nation or the columnists for Salon.
PS Any slashdot story that includes the word "Bush" (notwithstanding those discussing plantlife) is flamebait and should probably go on flamebait central.
...the original settlers of Canada relied heavily upon farming (and fishing) for their food.
Now all food is grown at the supermarket, of course.
My fellow slashdotters, please don't preorder software. Trust me, you won't get it any earlier than the guys who run to Fry's. In fact, preorderers will probably get their copies after Fry's, since there is a shipping delay.
Preorders are useful only when you can expect a supply shortage when something comes out. Such supply shortages are usually due to a combination of unexpected demand and limited production capacity. Game CDs, however, are very easy to manufacture, and given that demand for HL2 is already expected, you won't experience supply shortages.
Basically, a software preorder is a short-term, interest free loan that you are giving the vendor. It will not make the software arrive on your computer any sooner.
In other news, the power supply folks at Antec, Enermax, and Zalman just announced an increase in expected earnings.
Give me a break. Castro hasn't stopped torturing and murdering his enemies. Yeah, what the US is doing to prisoners violates the Geneva Convention, but they're all walking out with their body parts intact and alive, which is still a lot better than a lot of people get in places like Cuba.
This is not entirely true. A number of the pictures show prisoners that have been severely beaten. One picture showed a prisoner that had been stuffed in a body bag packed with ice; the photo showed the man after he died.
Three prisoners in Afghanistan have been killed during interogation (the investigations are ongoing after 18 months), two at Army bases and a third at a CIA facility on the Pakistan border. There are also at least 25 cases of Iraqi prisoners dying in US custody, 13 of them under suspicious circumstances.
On Meet the Press, Republican senator Lindsey Graham pointed out, "This is not just about humiliation, Tim. The allegations in this report involve rape and murder. Please, don't leave this whole scenario thinking that this is just about a humiliating experience. This is about system failure. This is about felony offenses."
Granted, the abuses in the US run Iraqi prisons do not match those under Saddam. They are worse, however, than most Middle Eastern countries.
The microsoft announcement was that the release version of SP2 would work even on pirated copies. The current beta version does not.
By the way, what would make you so interested in SP2 on a pirated copy, anyway?
Kudos to the architect
I respectfully disagree.