Given what we've seen constituting "US interests" over the last couple of decades or so regarding the actions & behaviors of US TLAs towards the digital/online security and privacy of US citizens and the Constitutionally-guaranteed civil rights they have and are currently violating, that's a selling-point not a downside.
If you believe Snowden has been allowed to live (and not die) in Russia all these years without turning over unredacted copies of all the classified information he stole...
Mr. Snowden gave Glen Greenwald, an editor for 'The Intercept' the data he had in order to have it parsed to eliminate PII etc and release the data, *before* he left for Shanghai and then was suddenly forced by the US State Dept. to remain stranded in a Russian airport terminal without a passport.
He carried none of the data with him, for obvious reasons.
This has all been public knowledge for a long time, but people still want to attempt to perpetuate this outright lie & fabrication in an attempt to smear Snowden and cover up blatant and ongoing illegal and unconstitutional activities against the citizens of the US with the full knowledge and consent of US leadership.
Sorry, mate. You say racist things in public, then you take the chance that someone is going to capture those utterances.
That's racist! Reported!
See?
The problem is who exactly gets to sit in judgement? What, precisely, makes something said in public racist?
Maybe what *you* say today may not make the 'list' but what about tomorrow? It could change and suddenly *you* are on the list.
Oh, there's no precise definition outside the moving definitions we see parading by every day you need to move the goalposts to include someone you dislike or exclude some people you like from being on the list?
"First they came for the Nazi-LARPing idiots, but I was not a LARPer..."
I see that the SPLC is involved, and if anyone has ever bothered to look at who the SPLC lists as 'terrorists' you'll understand this is nothing but a Heretics List.
It was invented to keep the same rich white fuck families running the country forever and ever amen.
Well, pick the race/group to your taste, but so far through the entirety of human history it's been those with wealth who've called the shots regardless of what ideological/political/religious/non-religious system...or no system...has been tried.
But, I'm sure *you* have the answers that have eluded Mankind since we came down out of the trees, right?
If this method of genetic modification to a negative fear response is possible, can a previously non-existent or low-level fear be amplified? How about other areas of the brain controlling other factors like emotion, cognition, etc? Submissiveness? Critical-thinking ability? Tendency to join group-think?
Lots of Dystopian possibilities, especially since it is accomplished through a virus, which would seem to lend itself to wide & rapid dissemination. How difficult would it be for terrorists or a rogue nation to acquire the capabilities?
Not sure the answers to many of these questions are going to help me sleep better at night.
Hamilton said that the point was to keep the vote out of the hands of The People because they're excitable. It had nothing to do with letting some states push around other states, or not. It was explicitly to avoid democracy, and institute oligarchy.
No, instituting a representative federal republic prevents large States from hogging power, the EC is to prevent a populist tyrant from taking over.
Democracy is mob-rule. It's two wolves and a sheep voting on what's for dinner. Tyranny of the majority. 51% ruling over 49%.
The "oligarchy" part came along much later, after many Constitutional limitations & restrictions on Federal scope and power were abolished or worked-around, largely.in the name of social justice and entitlement. Having only two major Parties over a long time lead to them working together against the population to secure their power and control while appearing to bitterly oppose each other to keep the populace distracted and deceived.
The Federal government went from having to hire private ships and artillery to fight a war, having no income tax and deriving most revenue from tariffs and similar, to a behemoth that eats up a large percentage of one of the richest nations on the planet's GDP, and has so many Federal laws that they couldn't count them all when they tried recently, and tracks & monitors everyone's communications and activities.
441e. Contributions and donations by foreign nationals (a) Prohibition It shall be unlawful forâ" (1) a foreign national, directly or indirectly, to makeâ" (A) a contribution or donation of money or other thing of value, or to make an express or implied promise to make a contribution or donation, in connection with a Federal, State, or local election; (B) a contribution or donation to a committee of a political party; or (C) an expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement for an electioneering communication (within the meaning of section 434(f)(3) of this title); or
(2) a person to solicit, accept, or receive a contribution or donation described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1) from a foreign national.
If there were financial records to prove this it would have been plastered on every network and all over the 'net by now and you know it.
I'm no fan of Trump. IMO he has no real and solid ideological nor political beliefs or principles, beyond those of a rich NYC real estate developer.
He may be dirty, he may not. But what's happening is not an impartial look at facts & law. In fact, the shitstorm of obvious bullshit and false accusations that are being detonated about every single thing Trump says or does, or hell, anything anyone dreams up that he maybe might do/have done will actually *HELP TRUMP GET AWAY WITH IT IF HE **IS** GUILTY*, FFS!
If he's broken the law, you're damned straight I want his ass prosecuted! Don't go fucking it up with all this bullshit, you idiots! Think beyond your nose!
Have they done the same thing for antifa that is actually a classified as a terrorist organization by the DHS in New Jersey? Have they done the same thing for BAMN that have their leaders arrested for violence and inciting riot ?
Are we going to get the same treatment to these organizations from tech or is the hypocrisy going to continue?
Actually, given the history of political aggrandizement by the Republican leadership(Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton), the recklessness and lack of integrity of Republican leadership, the failure to attempt impeachment was actually a surprise
I guess seven dozen ACA repeals was easier for them.
It's the "uniparty" effect that happens when you have only two major viable political parties sharing power over a long period of time. The longer this situation exists, the more the two parties will begin to stop fighting each other (in private) and begin to work together to secure them both more power, wealth, and control at the cost of the citizenry. After all, all politicians are thieves, scoundrels, and tyrants at heart. It pays to never forget that, no matter what they say or promise.
Amazon just recreated the Automat! Anyone else remember them from New York City?
Don't recall them from NYC, never been there (and these days no wish to visit).
However, I do remember first seeing/experiencing an automat as a kid, my family took a trip to visit an aunt & uncle in Detroit in the mid-'60s, maybe 1965 or '66? It was at the southeast corner of Woodward and Grand Circus Park.
I remember it well because my uncle had words with this one obnoxious fat guy smoking a huge cigar when winter was just getting a good head of steam up, the place was closed up tight and heat blasting, and the stench was gagging everyone, including kids. I didn't overhear what my uncle said and he wouldn't say when I asked, but the guy turned pale and made a hasty-jiggly beeline for the door! I did see a quick shared-smirk between my father and uncle, and both being decorated WW2 front-line combat veterans, I have to suppose whatever was said to Mr. Stinky was deadly-serious.
The novelty was cool and all, but I actually wasn't that crazy about the food. It was...OK if you're hungry. I mostly filled up on those slices of cherry pie, hah!
Well, yes, but this is perfectly normal - like oh-so-much else that is wrong with this administration.
Yes, it's not like Obama ever used the legal system and other Federal agencies, departments, etc in even more blatantly unconstitutional and illegal ways to attack his & the Progressive's perceived political/ideological enemies...oh, wait...
You dumbasses were cheering Obama & the Feds on while he and they abused government & presidential powers to attack conservatives, Republicans, and anyone else who criticized the administration or DNC and never gave a thought to how a Republican POTUS and administration might use those same expanded powers, but now that the shoe is on the other foot, suddenly there's a problem.
Sorry, I guess my post wasn't clear. I wasn't defending affirmative action; affirmative action is unfair.
I was trying to say that I didn't agree with post #55012157. This post expresses dislike of the fact that Damore's essay says that standards were "lowered" for diversity candidates.
Damore didn't mean that Google lowered their standards, in order to match a lower innate biological ability of women or minorities. He meant that Google lowered their standards because they had a goal of employing more women and minorities, and this was a way of accomplishing that goal.
So Damore writing "lower the bar for âoediversityâ candidates" did not mean he thinks women and minorities have lower innate biological abilities.
I think wanting more minority students is why universities have different standards for different races. It's unfair.
Sorry to post AC. I had to, to be able to use mod points.
Think of the universities that have higher admission standards for Asians, and lower standards for blacks and hispanics. Do the presidents of those universities think blacks and hispanics are biologically less suited than Asians for university work?
Yes, they do.
Or, at least the affirmative-action policies behind it assume it as fact.
"Affirmative Action" is legally-codified blatant racism & bigotry put in place by corrupt politicians with no respect for civil rights or the Constitution in order to placate and garner support from a vocal voting bloc.
I'm guessing their case is something like "he developed part of the tool that was eventually used in a bank heist". Which could be like charging the manufacturer of a large drill with conspiracy because one of their drills had been used in a physical bank robbery even if they had never interacted with the actual robbers on any level.
Very close. I think it's more like a guy buying a heavy-duty drill and hardened drill bits, and receiving generic advice about the best ways to drill through hardened steel from the owner of a hardware store, and then said guy breaks into a bank safe and robs it, and the government going after the hardware store owner as an accessory to the crime.
And yes, I also believe Hutchins is being punished for interfering in a US TLA operation in which WCry was a part. Need to start doxing the top brass of US TLAs & LEAs to restore at least some small measure of accountability that currently does not exist.
It's a shame that quality research is censored and science is being prevented from advancing in this area.
There's a *lot* of wealth and power/control over people at stake with AGW. The rapid spread of increased wealth and freedom/independence for individuals in the West in the 20th & 21st centuries is alarming to those in power. Cheap, abundant energy is one of the key factors in this phenomenon, so increasing the cost and reducing the availability & convenience of energy is a priority for those in power.
After all, how can you control & wield authoritarian power over a bunch of wealthy, educated, and independent people who don't need you?
It's much simpler than tarnishing a shiny as you propose.
It's about creating a narrative and an atmosphere of fear and threat among the populace regarding civilian drones in order to make tightening regulations and laws around civilian drones easier to pass and implement with less pushback.
Drones in civilian hands terrify Western governments, especially the US & UK, because it gives civilians the power to observe and record illicit/illegal/horrific government activities which their governments wish to keep hidden from their citizens and the world.
It's about what it's always about when government is involved.
...Is an extremely low price for TPTB to crush an established-system-upsetting upstart like Uber. TPTB have been trying with mixed success to destroy Uber from the outside, apparently they've also decided to have a go at them from the inside.
Uber and other similar ride-sharing services threaten an entire ecosystem of local graft & corruption involving taxi services, taxi unions, and local politicians and governments. They're getting off cheap if $27M effectively destroys Uber and keeps the gravy-train of graft & corruption running.
It's like you don't understand how averages, distributions or populations work.
He's that peasant in Life of Brian who says "She turned me into a newt!....Wot, I got better!"
He and others of his ilk on the Left just want witches & warlocks to burn, and when there is a lack of such handy, Leftists simply create them by accusing anyone who says/does anything they dislike.
They keep trying to go with ID laws knowing that certain minorities and poor areas are statistically not likely to have them more than others.
If they have no ID how do they live and function? Hell, you have to have ID to get federal food assistance! (aka 'food stamps') Nearly everywhere provides free photo-ID, so cost is not a factor. As far as statistics, I could prove you don't actually exist with statistics.
And then when/if it passes, then they start strategically trying to make it harder to get those ID's in areas they don't want voting attempting to destroy the integrity of the system even more and will refuse to do something like making those IDs free to the public and available enough even in the poor areas so that everyone can reasonably get them regardless of how poor they are. Instead they try and make it into some ghetto poll tax.
Any time steps are proposed to improve the integrity of the voting system in the US, the Progressive Democrats start tearing their hair out screaming about disenfranchising some group...
Really, when you start frothing at the mouth about bringing back literacy tests and poll taxes, you are showing a tell.
Bwaahaahaa!
Thanks for proving my point!
I did not suggest any such thing, but there *you* go, "frothing at the mouth" as you put it.
It's probably a good thing nobody is requiring a literacy test, as your post would indicate you'd be in some difficulty.
Slashdot Mirror
...not exactly in tune with US interests.
Given what we've seen constituting "US interests" over the last couple of decades or so regarding the actions & behaviors of US TLAs towards the digital/online security and privacy of US citizens and the Constitutionally-guaranteed civil rights they have and are currently violating, that's a selling-point not a downside.
Strat
You mean just giving computers to kids doesn't make them smarter? You actually still have to teach them and get them engaged in learning?
Well I'll be...
On the up-side, there are now a lot of local Maine weed dealers online that would not have been without this program!
Strat
If you believe Snowden has been allowed to live (and not die) in Russia all these years without turning over unredacted copies of all the classified information he stole...
Mr. Snowden gave Glen Greenwald, an editor for 'The Intercept' the data he had in order to have it parsed to eliminate PII etc and release the data, *before* he left for Shanghai and then was suddenly forced by the US State Dept. to remain stranded in a Russian airport terminal without a passport.
He carried none of the data with him, for obvious reasons.
This has all been public knowledge for a long time, but people still want to attempt to perpetuate this outright lie & fabrication in an attempt to smear Snowden and cover up blatant and ongoing illegal and unconstitutional activities against the citizens of the US with the full knowledge and consent of US leadership.
Strat
Sorry, mate. You say racist things in public, then you take the chance that someone is going to capture those utterances.
That's racist! Reported!
See?
The problem is who exactly gets to sit in judgement? What, precisely, makes something said in public racist?
Maybe what *you* say today may not make the 'list' but what about tomorrow? It could change and suddenly *you* are on the list.
Oh, there's no precise definition outside the moving definitions we see parading by every day you need to move the goalposts to include someone you dislike or exclude some people you like from being on the list?
"First they came for the Nazi-LARPing idiots, but I was not a LARPer..."
I see that the SPLC is involved, and if anyone has ever bothered to look at who the SPLC lists as 'terrorists' you'll understand this is nothing but a Heretics List.
May you receive the history-replay you deserve.
Strat
It was invented to keep the same rich white fuck families running the country forever and ever amen.
Well, pick the race/group to your taste, but so far through the entirety of human history it's been those with wealth who've called the shots regardless of what ideological/political/religious/non-religious system...or no system...has been tried.
But, I'm sure *you* have the answers that have eluded Mankind since we came down out of the trees, right?
Strat
If this method of genetic modification to a negative fear response is possible, can a previously non-existent or low-level fear be amplified? How about other areas of the brain controlling other factors like emotion, cognition, etc? Submissiveness? Critical-thinking ability? Tendency to join group-think?
Lots of Dystopian possibilities, especially since it is accomplished through a virus, which would seem to lend itself to wide & rapid dissemination. How difficult would it be for terrorists or a rogue nation to acquire the capabilities?
Not sure the answers to many of these questions are going to help me sleep better at night.
Strat
Hamilton said that the point was to keep the vote out of the hands of The People because they're excitable. It had nothing to do with letting some states push around other states, or not. It was explicitly to avoid democracy, and institute oligarchy.
No, instituting a representative federal republic prevents large States from hogging power, the EC is to prevent a populist tyrant from taking over.
Democracy is mob-rule. It's two wolves and a sheep voting on what's for dinner. Tyranny of the majority. 51% ruling over 49%.
The "oligarchy" part came along much later, after many Constitutional limitations & restrictions on Federal scope and power were abolished or worked-around, largely.in the name of social justice and entitlement. Having only two major Parties over a long time lead to them working together against the population to secure their power and control while appearing to bitterly oppose each other to keep the populace distracted and deceived.
The Federal government went from having to hire private ships and artillery to fight a war, having no income tax and deriving most revenue from tariffs and similar, to a behemoth that eats up a large percentage of one of the richest nations on the planet's GDP, and has so many Federal laws that they couldn't count them all when they tried recently, and tracks & monitors everyone's communications and activities.
Strat
US code 441 e
https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/...
441e. Contributions and donations by foreign nationals (a) Prohibition
It shall be unlawful forâ"
(1) a foreign national, directly or indirectly,
to makeâ"
(A) a contribution or donation of money or other thing of value,
or to make an express or implied promise to make a contribution
or donation, in connection with a Federal, State, or local election;
(B) a contribution or donation to a committee of a political party; or
(C) an expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement for an electioneering
communication (within the meaning of section 434(f)(3) of this title); or
(2) a person to solicit, accept, or receive a contribution or donation described in
subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1) from a foreign national.
If there were financial records to prove this it would have been plastered on every network and all over the 'net by now and you know it.
I'm no fan of Trump. IMO he has no real and solid ideological nor political beliefs or principles, beyond those of a rich NYC real estate developer.
He may be dirty, he may not. But what's happening is not an impartial look at facts & law. In fact, the shitstorm of obvious bullshit and false accusations that are being detonated about every single thing Trump says or does, or hell, anything anyone dreams up that he maybe might do/have done will actually *HELP TRUMP GET AWAY WITH IT IF HE **IS** GUILTY*, FFS!
If he's broken the law, you're damned straight I want his ass prosecuted! Don't go fucking it up with all this bullshit, you idiots! Think beyond your nose!
Strat
Have they done the same thing for antifa that is actually a classified as a terrorist organization by the DHS in New Jersey?
Have they done the same thing for BAMN that have their leaders arrested for violence and inciting riot ?
Are we going to get the same treatment to these organizations from tech or is the hypocrisy going to continue?
Didn't you get the memo?
Some animals are more equal than others.
Strat
Actually, given the history of political aggrandizement by the Republican leadership(Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton), the recklessness and lack of integrity of Republican leadership, the failure to attempt impeachment was actually a surprise
I guess seven dozen ACA repeals was easier for them.
It's the "uniparty" effect that happens when you have only two major viable political parties sharing power over a long period of time. The longer this situation exists, the more the two parties will begin to stop fighting each other (in private) and begin to work together to secure them both more power, wealth, and control at the cost of the citizenry. After all, all politicians are thieves, scoundrels, and tyrants at heart. It pays to never forget that, no matter what they say or promise.
Strat
Amazon just recreated the Automat! Anyone else remember them from New York City?
Don't recall them from NYC, never been there (and these days no wish to visit).
However, I do remember first seeing/experiencing an automat as a kid, my family took a trip to visit an aunt & uncle in Detroit in the mid-'60s, maybe 1965 or '66? It was at the southeast corner of Woodward and Grand Circus Park.
I remember it well because my uncle had words with this one obnoxious fat guy smoking a huge cigar when winter was just getting a good head of steam up, the place was closed up tight and heat blasting, and the stench was gagging everyone, including kids. I didn't overhear what my uncle said and he wouldn't say when I asked, but the guy turned pale and made a hasty-jiggly beeline for the door! I did see a quick shared-smirk between my father and uncle, and both being decorated WW2 front-line combat veterans, I have to suppose whatever was said to Mr. Stinky was deadly-serious.
The novelty was cool and all, but I actually wasn't that crazy about the food. It was...OK if you're hungry. I mostly filled up on those slices of cherry pie, hah!
Strat
FF55 prevents the running of local flash files which is a non starter for me.
Very much this.
Not sure which browser I'll end up with, but it will not be FF55.
Strat
Yes, it's not like Obama ever used the legal system and other Federal agencies, departments, etc in even more blatantly unconstitutional and illegal ways to attack his & the Progressive's perceived political/ideological enemies...oh, wait...
You dumbasses were cheering Obama & the Feds on while he and they abused government & presidential powers to attack conservatives, Republicans, and anyone else who criticized the administration or DNC and never gave a thought to how a Republican POTUS and administration might use those same expanded powers, but now that the shoe is on the other foot, suddenly there's a problem.
Strat
Sorry, I guess my post wasn't clear. I wasn't defending affirmative action; affirmative action is unfair.
I was trying to say that I didn't agree with post #55012157. This post expresses dislike of the fact that Damore's essay says that standards were "lowered" for diversity candidates.
Damore didn't mean that Google lowered their standards, in order to match a lower innate biological ability of women or minorities. He meant that Google lowered their standards because they had a goal of employing more women and minorities, and this was a way of accomplishing that goal.
So Damore writing "lower the bar for âoediversityâ candidates" did not mean he thinks women and minorities have lower innate biological abilities.
I think wanting more minority students is why universities have different standards for different races. It's unfair.
Sorry to post AC. I had to, to be able to use mod points.
Fair enough.
And agreed, regarding the rest of your post.
Strat
Think of the universities that have higher admission standards for Asians, and lower standards for blacks and hispanics. Do the presidents of those universities think blacks and hispanics are biologically less suited than Asians for university work?
Yes, they do.
Or, at least the affirmative-action policies behind it assume it as fact.
"Affirmative Action" is legally-codified blatant racism & bigotry put in place by corrupt politicians with no respect for civil rights or the Constitution in order to placate and garner support from a vocal voting bloc.
Strat
Either/or. It's a distinction without much difference.
Strat
I'm guessing their case is something like "he developed part of the tool that was eventually used in a bank heist". Which could be like charging the manufacturer of a large drill with conspiracy because one of their drills had been used in a physical bank robbery even if they had never interacted with the actual robbers on any level.
Very close. I think it's more like a guy buying a heavy-duty drill and hardened drill bits, and receiving generic advice about the best ways to drill through hardened steel from the owner of a hardware store, and then said guy breaks into a bank safe and robs it, and the government going after the hardware store owner as an accessory to the crime.
And yes, I also believe Hutchins is being punished for interfering in a US TLA operation in which WCry was a part. Need to start doxing the top brass of US TLAs & LEAs to restore at least some small measure of accountability that currently does not exist.
Strat
It's a shame that quality research is censored and science is being prevented from advancing in this area.
There's a *lot* of wealth and power/control over people at stake with AGW. The rapid spread of increased wealth and freedom/independence for individuals in the West in the 20th & 21st centuries is alarming to those in power. Cheap, abundant energy is one of the key factors in this phenomenon, so increasing the cost and reducing the availability & convenience of energy is a priority for those in power.
After all, how can you control & wield authoritarian power over a bunch of wealthy, educated, and independent people who don't need you?
Strat
Unless, of course, it's not about the drone.
It's much simpler than tarnishing a shiny as you propose.
It's about creating a narrative and an atmosphere of fear and threat among the populace regarding civilian drones in order to make tightening regulations and laws around civilian drones easier to pass and implement with less pushback.
Drones in civilian hands terrify Western governments, especially the US & UK, because it gives civilians the power to observe and record illicit/illegal/horrific government activities which their governments wish to keep hidden from their citizens and the world.
It's about what it's always about when government is involved.
It's about control.
Strat
Strat, your logic is ironclad. So... when are you coming home to New Hampshire? ;)
Hah! Thanks! :)
Been keeping an eye on the Free State Project, and yes, thinking about possibly relocating either there or Texas at some point.
Be safe out there! ;)
Strat
Frankly, I'm more afraid of the FBI than any Muslim.
Being afraid of one's government having too much power is both logical and wise.
More people have been killed by their own nation's government than have died in all the wars in recorded history, by orders of magnitude.
Those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
Strat
Benchmark's investment of $27M
...Is an extremely low price for TPTB to crush an established-system-upsetting upstart like Uber. TPTB have been trying with mixed success to destroy Uber from the outside, apparently they've also decided to have a go at them from the inside.
Uber and other similar ride-sharing services threaten an entire ecosystem of local graft & corruption involving taxi services, taxi unions, and local politicians and governments. They're getting off cheap if $27M effectively destroys Uber and keeps the gravy-train of graft & corruption running.
Strat
It's like you don't understand how averages, distributions or populations work.
He's that peasant in Life of Brian who says "She turned me into a newt!....Wot, I got better!"
He and others of his ilk on the Left just want witches & warlocks to burn, and when there is a lack of such handy, Leftists simply create them by accusing anyone who says/does anything they dislike.
Strat
They keep trying to go with ID laws knowing that certain minorities and poor areas are statistically not likely to have them more than others.
If they have no ID how do they live and function? Hell, you have to have ID to get federal food assistance! (aka 'food stamps') Nearly everywhere provides free photo-ID, so cost is not a factor. As far as statistics, I could prove you don't actually exist with statistics.
And then when/if it passes, then they start strategically trying to make it harder to get those ID's in areas they don't want voting attempting to destroy the integrity of the system even more and will refuse to do something like making those IDs free to the public and available enough even in the poor areas so that everyone can reasonably get them regardless of how poor they are. Instead they try and make it into some ghetto poll tax.
Citations?
Strat
Bwaahaahaa!
Thanks for proving my point!
I did not suggest any such thing, but there *you* go, "frothing at the mouth" as you put it.
It's probably a good thing nobody is requiring a literacy test, as your post would indicate you'd be in some difficulty.
Strat