Have you seen Shadia Drury's work? She's been after the Straussians for a long time. You can find a very informative interview with her here.
Some people have called her a conspiracy theorist, and in fact, when I first heard her interpretation of Straussianism, I thought she was nuts. I had heard Wolfowitz interviewed and to me he sounded like an exceptionally bright , compassionate guy.
However, the events of the last few years have convinced me otherwise. Not about the bright part either. Things have gone quite badly for the US on the ground in Iraq. I have a hard time believing that a group of people as smart as Wolfowitz and Feith are screwing up "accidentally." Thus I am left to give credence to Prof. Drury, that this is an organized plan on the part of the neo-cons.
I've read some Plato, and it seems to me that if Wolfowitz et. al. are deeply influenced by The Republic. They are the philosopher kings, while people like Tommy Franks are the guardians. Pretty clear cut. To paraphrase Prof. Drury, an admirer of "The Republic" could not be in favor of democracy. So if Strauss and his students venerated the classics as much as they claim to have, then Wolfowitz etc. are lying. They don't believe in democracy. They believe in perpetual war as a means to keep the unwashed masses off balanced, and the elites firmly in power.
Hi,
Well I've lived in China. And I have plenty of friends who did, or do live there.
It is totally ridiculous for you to say that the "US and China are different but in reality they are no much different."
In the US I don't have to worry that criticizing the US govt on my webpage will get me and my family arrested and harassed. Try that in China and see what happens. And it HAS HAPPENED.
In the US I don't need to worry that working for a human rights NGO will lead to my parents losing their jobs. But that is a real concern for some Chinese people.
Now is the US getting worse? Certainly, as the Joseph Wilson case shows us it is.
But to claim that there is not "much difference" between China and the United States, is like saying there isn't much difference between getting a broken arm and a broken neck. There's a difference.
Get out of your "expat" bubble and maybe you'll see that. Or not.
You die just as surely whether you starve because nobody will sell you food or someone shoots you.
I think that about sums it up. Best one liner I've read on slashdot in a long time.
note: this is not legal advice. do not take it as such.
I would sue them locally, but because Warrantech is an administrator and not the actual warranty provider, CA doesn't give me a remedy against them for breach. At least, that is what my legal research bears out (surfed on Nexis). IANAL.
Hey Guys, Thanks for all the advice. I am working on an update so I can let you know how it all turned out.
I am still, one pissed off customer. I hope to turn this into an FAQ to help out other people in this situation. No one should pay 300 bucks for an extended warranty, then get jerked around.
They claim that weight is not a "feature" of a laptop. Pretty lame. That's why they won't pay me the full amount. There's a bunch of other nonsense that's happened since I dropped this story into the edit que. I will write up my experiences and post them here on slashdot.
For now, I'll say this simply--I feel that Warrantech has treated me in a rude, and high handed manner. Personally, this is the worst "service" I have ever received, especially considering the price I paid for the warranty.
Lawyers spend most of their time writing and editing. In a typical firm what happens is that an attorney will write something, print it out, edit it with a pen and then hand it either to a junior attorney or a secretary. Then the secretary or junior attorney will input the changes. It's a total waste of time, because then the typist has to go back and try to figure out what the hell the lawyer was talking about.
With good software (and I admit that XP is only getting there), an attorney could edit right on the screen. Now some of you will ask why attorneys can't do that now on screen The answer is that editing is an interactive process where often people want to scribble in the margins or otherwise engage with the document.
My prediction? When tablet PC's get good enough, you'll see the ranks of secretaries thin out at some law firms. People who understand IT (and most lawyers don't) will be able to shrink the overhead at their firm. Everyone else will be lunch.
Slashdot Mirror
Have you seen Shadia Drury's work? She's been after the Straussians for a long time. You can find a very informative interview with her here.
Some people have called her a conspiracy theorist, and in fact, when I first heard her interpretation of Straussianism, I thought she was nuts. I had heard Wolfowitz interviewed and to me he sounded like an exceptionally bright , compassionate guy.
However, the events of the last few years have convinced me otherwise. Not about the bright part either. Things have gone quite badly for the US on the ground in Iraq. I have a hard time believing that a group of people as smart as Wolfowitz and Feith are screwing up "accidentally." Thus I am left to give credence to Prof. Drury, that this is an organized plan on the part of the neo-cons.
I've read some Plato, and it seems to me that if Wolfowitz et. al. are deeply influenced by The Republic. They are the philosopher kings, while people like Tommy Franks are the guardians. Pretty clear cut. To paraphrase Prof. Drury, an admirer of "The Republic" could not be in favor of democracy. So if Strauss and his students venerated the classics as much as they claim to have, then Wolfowitz etc. are lying. They don't believe in democracy. They believe in perpetual war as a means to keep the unwashed masses off balanced, and the elites firmly in power.
Hi, Well I've lived in China. And I have plenty of friends who did, or do live there. It is totally ridiculous for you to say that the "US and China are different but in reality they are no much different." In the US I don't have to worry that criticizing the US govt on my webpage will get me and my family arrested and harassed. Try that in China and see what happens. And it HAS HAPPENED. In the US I don't need to worry that working for a human rights NGO will lead to my parents losing their jobs. But that is a real concern for some Chinese people. Now is the US getting worse? Certainly, as the Joseph Wilson case shows us it is. But to claim that there is not "much difference" between China and the United States, is like saying there isn't much difference between getting a broken arm and a broken neck. There's a difference. Get out of your "expat" bubble and maybe you'll see that. Or not.
You die just as surely whether you starve because nobody will sell you food or someone shoots you. I think that about sums it up. Best one liner I've read on slashdot in a long time.
i'm an idiot. i should have left the permalink. Here it is.
A full account of my experiences, and a brief FAQ on warranty vendors is up on my xanga. you can find the link above.
note: this is not legal advice. do not take it as such.
I would sue them locally, but because Warrantech is an administrator and not the actual warranty provider, CA doesn't give me a remedy against them for breach. At least, that is what my legal research bears out (surfed on Nexis). IANAL.
Hey Guys,
Thanks for all the advice. I am working on an update so I can let you know how it all turned out.
I am still, one pissed off customer. I hope to turn this into an FAQ to help out other people in this situation. No one should pay 300 bucks for an extended warranty, then get jerked around.
They claim that weight is not a "feature" of a laptop. Pretty lame. That's why they won't pay me the full amount. There's a bunch of other nonsense that's happened since I dropped this story into the edit que. I will write up my experiences and post them here on slashdot. For now, I'll say this simply--I feel that Warrantech has treated me in a rude, and high handed manner. Personally, this is the worst "service" I have ever received, especially considering the price I paid for the warranty.
Lawyers spend most of their time writing and editing. In a typical firm what happens is that an attorney will write something, print it out, edit it with a pen and then hand it either to a junior attorney or a secretary. Then the secretary or junior attorney will input the changes. It's a total waste of time, because then the typist has to go back and try to figure out what the hell the lawyer was talking about.
With good software (and I admit that XP is only getting there), an attorney could edit right on the screen. Now some of you will ask why attorneys can't do that now on screen The answer is that editing is an interactive process where often people want to scribble in the margins or otherwise engage with the document.
My prediction? When tablet PC's get good enough, you'll see the ranks of secretaries thin out at some law firms. People who understand IT (and most lawyers don't) will be able to shrink the overhead at their firm. Everyone else will be lunch.