Entitlements are rising much faster than Defense, the latter is scheduled to track inflation. Entitlements, on the other hand, are scheduled to explode due to the Me Generation demanding their pound of flesh from the rest of us.
That said, the current deficit must be reduced. Today, there is a story how the DoD has attempted to cut the airbourne laser. They couldn't because those budget conscious Congress-critters cannot abide it...for the last several years. DoD isn't the problem, Congress is the problem. Even when they want to cut, they cannot because some Tea Twit or Left-Wingnut finds the system DoD wishes to cut is built in their district.
DoD would like to cut overseas commitments. Okay. How? New treaties must be promulgated and passed. Let's do that. Europe? Why is the U.S. defending their whiny asses? It's about time they stand up on their own. Korea? Japan? The U.S. runs a trade deficit with them. Is it not time to allow them to defend themselves?
The U.S. has global responsibilities. So do those that are under the U.S. umbrella. It is time for them to take their proper place. Presumably this means they won't fuck it up and cause a new world war...the two that scared the U.S. enough to the thinking they are just a bunch of fuck-ups who couldn't be trusted not to start one.
The federal government had this debate, and decided that internet commerce was too fragile at the time and they wished to see it increased. So they agreed not to tax it. Now that is has grown up, government should look again at a solution. Except that now with Tea Twits squeezing the balls of the Republicans, don't expect any support for any new taxes any time soon.
"government is just a collection agency for the obscenely wealthy." Care to make that argument to people totally dependent on social security and medicare? I will admit that SS and Medicare should be phased out for retirees who have enough income to cover themselves, but government is what we use to so that our society is not entirely dog-eat-dog.
"There's a law about taxation: the more you try to get, the less you actually get." So, if a state drops its tax rate to 0%, it gets the most? I'm surprised they don't see this, maybe you could tell them?
Your solution is totally unreasonable. There is no way you will get compliance like having people report their purchases nor do the states have the resources to track them down. Someone above had a decent solution, have federal site that could be queried by Ma and Pop and Amazon alike to compute taxes and then charge taxes like all the brick and mortars. A national sales tax probably won't work because as soon as money goes to Washington, it has a tendency to get spent by Congress-critters.
"retardican", that's good. I've had this argument with similarly unenlightened people before. The argument goes:
Them: No public money for research unless it is medical research. Me: Hmmm....quantum mechanics and relativity, modern techno-stuff is built on it, couldn't get funded these days. Them: Uh...uh...yeah, but I'm talking about pie in the sky research. Me: That was pie in sky, so was group theory, which underpins transaction security you can buy stuff on-line. Them: Yeah, well, they could point to something useful. Me: No they couldn't, Galois died in 1932. Them: Oh, okay, but not social research. Me: So, you don't want to know what social problems have solutions, like failure of schools? Them: Okay, you made your point.
Two months later:
Them: No public money for research unless it is medical research. Me: Recall we had this argument 2 months ago and you admit you lost. Them: What was your reasoning again?
You see, there's no talking sense to these people, they cannot keep anything abstract in their heads for longer than a gnat's attention span.
I think that if religious based concepts are to be presented as alternative "theories" to scientific theories, then they should be treated as scientific theories. That means we now get to question religious based concepts, in particular the documents upon which they are based. In the Old Testament, there are several inconsistencies starting with the first book where there are two accounts of creation. Let's teach the controversy...please. It is the least we can do.
The problem with the scientifically minded people is that they are constantly playing defense in this cultural war. It is time to take the offense and show up all the inconsistencies inherent in the major (and minor) religions.
"That ought to speak with some authority to the sceptics, I would have thought."
You thought wrong, most of the skeptics are not skeptical on scientific reasons, they are skeptical because they do not wish to believe it. They do not wish to believe for various reasons: they might need to change their lifestyle, or G-d "gave" man "authority" over the Earth and to somehow claim we screwed it up would mean that authority might have to be relinquished...but how can a religious doctrine be relinquished, they own stock in carbon spewing industries, they might have to feel responsible for spewing carbon, etc.
"False is not the correct term, it is not 100% accurate. " Quite right, false would 0% accurate. Sometimes it helps to think of the percentage as "degree of truth" although dead philosophers everywhere are now puking.
Lancet could hardly go about repeating experiments for every author(s) they publish. At some point, a publisher must simply trust that they aren't dealing with charlatans. It is like this for all sciences, and even pure areas like mathematics.
Yep, this site is become more and more a PITA with each new round of changes. I think it is a social experiment gone horribly wrong because it is run by demented aliens who figure if they cannot suck your brain matter out through your ears they can at least destroy it in situ.
Astrology probably predated Zoroastor, the early cities in Mesopotamia (e.g., Ur) settled around 2600 had built ziggarats which were Temples various gods. Zoroaster came along roughly 1600 years later. The Babylonians 1696 – 1654 probably had a form we'd recognize. But it can be traced back to early Babylonian culture (around 2400) after the culture that built Ur collapsed.
And that's only the Western branch. The Chinese developed their own brand. If the Zoroastrians had anything to do with Astrology, they probably adopted it from others. The Achaemenid empire was much later around 500 BC.
Bill coming back wouldn't help them. He built the sclerotic organization over which Ballmer presides. And technology passed Bill by long ago, his technical grasp is irrelevant.
It isn't Steve Jobs thinking up new takes on old markets that drives Apple. It is their staff that come up with bright ideas that Steve is good at sifting. He had to be good because one misstep could sink Apple. They are not that big of a company, their stock valuation does not make them a big company.
MS's problem is their sclerotic organization and entrenched fiefdoms. For a new fiefdom to start, the others would have to allow it. They won't because they view it all as a zero sum game. Their 90% penetration of the PC market has infected the whole organization. There is nowhere to grow if you view the world as 90% yours. It isn't but I don't think that is how they see it. So innovation gets smothered in its crib.
Thursday, Feb. 26, 1998: "The U.S. Department of Energy asked for public comment Thursday on its plans to produce bomb material in a commercial nuclear reactor. DOE is considering three Tennessee Valley Authority nuclear plants for production of tritium, a form of hydrogen gas that intensifies the explosive force of a nuclear warhead. It would be the first time the United States has used a civilian reactor as its source for tritium. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)"
Except for the above, commercial plants are not producing weapons grade material, it is too much of a security risk.
One thing that could go wrong, although probably not in this case due to their shortened life span, is that they manage to kill of an entire insect species or at the subspecies in their area. Then the critters that eat the mosquitoes need a new source of food putting pressure on what ever other species they are eating and those that eat them. Life is a web, fuck it up and there goes you.
When your religion idolizes force, the religion IS part of the problem. You do know what sentence is meted out to anyone attempting to leave Islam, don't you?
Maybe they are typically unstable, but the Taliban have taken to using small children. One woman recounted how she fled the family home when her brother told her she would be next martyr. Unfortunately, her sister was left behind she is sure her brother used her instead.
You mean the 2 to 5 billion the U.S. gives Egypt which probably goes to spending on arms. And that money is going to shake a $14 trillion U.S. economy. Do get a sense of proportion.
The Egyptian government decided that Swine Flu is caused by pigs and ordered all the pigs in the country to be slaughtered. It was easy for them since pigs don't fit into Islam very well. However, the pigs were owned by the Christians who kept them because they allowed them to continue to work in one of the few sectors allowed for them, garbage collection. Once the pigs were gone, the Christians doing garbage collection had to find other ways to survive. The Egyptians then experienced a garbage crisis. That was roughly about 2 years ago, not sure where the garbage goes now.
Slashdot Mirror
Entitlements are rising much faster than Defense, the latter is scheduled to track inflation. Entitlements, on the other hand, are scheduled to explode due to the Me Generation demanding their pound of flesh from the rest of us.
That said, the current deficit must be reduced. Today, there is a story how the DoD has attempted to cut the airbourne laser. They couldn't because those budget conscious Congress-critters cannot abide it...for the last several years. DoD isn't the problem, Congress is the problem. Even when they want to cut, they cannot because some Tea Twit or Left-Wingnut finds the system DoD wishes to cut is built in their district.
DoD would like to cut overseas commitments. Okay. How? New treaties must be promulgated and passed. Let's do that. Europe? Why is the U.S. defending their whiny asses? It's about time they stand up on their own. Korea? Japan? The U.S. runs a trade deficit with them. Is it not time to allow them to defend themselves?
The U.S. has global responsibilities. So do those that are under the U.S. umbrella. It is time for them to take their proper place. Presumably this means they won't fuck it up and cause a new world war...the two that scared the U.S. enough to the thinking they are just a bunch of fuck-ups who couldn't be trusted not to start one.
The federal government had this debate, and decided that internet commerce was too fragile at the time and they wished to see it increased. So they agreed not to tax it. Now that is has grown up, government should look again at a solution. Except that now with Tea Twits squeezing the balls of the Republicans, don't expect any support for any new taxes any time soon.
"government is just a collection agency for the obscenely wealthy." Care to make that argument to people totally dependent on social security and medicare? I will admit that SS and Medicare should be phased out for retirees who have enough income to cover themselves, but government is what we use to so that our society is not entirely dog-eat-dog.
"There's a law about taxation: the more you try to get, the less you actually get." So, if a state drops its tax rate to 0%, it gets the most? I'm surprised they don't see this, maybe you could tell them?
Your solution is totally unreasonable. There is no way you will get compliance like having people report their purchases nor do the states have the resources to track them down. Someone above had a decent solution, have federal site that could be queried by Ma and Pop and Amazon alike to compute taxes and then charge taxes like all the brick and mortars. A national sales tax probably won't work because as soon as money goes to Washington, it has a tendency to get spent by Congress-critters.
"retardican", that's good. I've had this argument with similarly unenlightened people before. The argument goes:
Them: No public money for research unless it is medical research.
Me: Hmmm....quantum mechanics and relativity, modern techno-stuff is built on it, couldn't get funded these days.
Them: Uh...uh...yeah, but I'm talking about pie in the sky research.
Me: That was pie in sky, so was group theory, which underpins transaction security you can buy stuff on-line.
Them: Yeah, well, they could point to something useful.
Me: No they couldn't, Galois died in 1932.
Them: Oh, okay, but not social research.
Me: So, you don't want to know what social problems have solutions, like failure of schools?
Them: Okay, you made your point.
Two months later:
Them: No public money for research unless it is medical research.
Me: Recall we had this argument 2 months ago and you admit you lost.
Them: What was your reasoning again?
You see, there's no talking sense to these people, they cannot keep anything abstract in their heads for longer than a gnat's attention span.
Your tin foil hat is on too tightly again, isn't it?
"The big question is, who should replace him as CEO?" Foghorn Leghorn.
I think that if religious based concepts are to be presented as alternative "theories" to scientific theories, then they should be treated as scientific theories. That means we now get to question religious based concepts, in particular the documents upon which they are based. In the Old Testament, there are several inconsistencies starting with the first book where there are two accounts of creation. Let's teach the controversy...please. It is the least we can do.
The problem with the scientifically minded people is that they are constantly playing defense in this cultural war. It is time to take the offense and show up all the inconsistencies inherent in the major (and minor) religions.
"That ought to speak with some authority to the sceptics, I would have thought."
You thought wrong, most of the skeptics are not skeptical on scientific reasons, they are skeptical because they do not wish to believe it. They do not wish to believe for various reasons: they might need to change their lifestyle, or G-d "gave" man "authority" over the Earth and to somehow claim we screwed it up would mean that authority might have to be relinquished...but how can a religious doctrine be relinquished, they own stock in carbon spewing industries, they might have to feel responsible for spewing carbon, etc.
"False is not the correct term, it is not 100% accurate. " Quite right, false would 0% accurate. Sometimes it helps to think of the percentage as "degree of truth" although dead philosophers everywhere are now puking.
Lancet could hardly go about repeating experiments for every author(s) they publish. At some point, a publisher must simply trust that they aren't dealing with charlatans. It is like this for all sciences, and even pure areas like mathematics.
Yep, this site is become more and more a PITA with each new round of changes. I think it is a social experiment gone horribly wrong because it is run by demented aliens who figure if they cannot suck your brain matter out through your ears they can at least destroy it in situ.
Astrology probably predated Zoroastor, the early cities in Mesopotamia (e.g., Ur) settled around 2600 had built ziggarats which were Temples various gods. Zoroaster came along roughly 1600 years later. The Babylonians 1696 – 1654 probably had a form we'd recognize. But it can be traced back to early Babylonian culture (around 2400) after the culture that built Ur collapsed.
And that's only the Western branch. The Chinese developed their own brand. If the Zoroastrians had anything to do with Astrology, they probably adopted it from others. The Achaemenid empire was much later around 500 BC.
Bill coming back wouldn't help them. He built the sclerotic organization over which Ballmer presides. And technology passed Bill by long ago, his technical grasp is irrelevant.
It isn't Steve Jobs thinking up new takes on old markets that drives Apple. It is their staff that come up with bright ideas that Steve is good at sifting. He had to be good because one misstep could sink Apple. They are not that big of a company, their stock valuation does not make them a big company.
MS's problem is their sclerotic organization and entrenched fiefdoms. For a new fiefdom to start, the others would have to allow it. They won't because they view it all as a zero sum game. Their 90% penetration of the PC market has infected the whole organization. There is nowhere to grow if you view the world as 90% yours. It isn't but I don't think that is how they see it. So innovation gets smothered in its crib.
Curiously enough, both are under the U.S. nuclear umbrella. And yet they persist in not building their own, who'd of thunk?
Thursday, Feb. 26, 1998: "The U.S. Department of Energy asked for public comment Thursday on its plans to produce bomb material in a commercial nuclear reactor. DOE is considering three Tennessee Valley Authority nuclear plants for production of tritium, a form of hydrogen gas that intensifies the explosive force of a nuclear warhead. It would be the first time the United States has used a civilian reactor as its source for tritium. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)"
Except for the above, commercial plants are not producing weapons grade material, it is too much of a security risk.
One thing that could go wrong, although probably not in this case due to their shortened life span, is that they manage to kill of an entire insect species or at the subspecies in their area. Then the critters that eat the mosquitoes need a new source of food putting pressure on what ever other species they are eating and those that eat them. Life is a web, fuck it up and there goes you.
Yeah, yer right, the interstate road system was a complete boondoggle and never helped create any jobs outside of its construction companies.
Yes, and let's hear from the Muslim Street about what crimes they think are being committed for the sake of their religion: [crickets]
When your religion idolizes force, the religion IS part of the problem. You do know what sentence is meted out to anyone attempting to leave Islam, don't you?
Maybe they are typically unstable, but the Taliban have taken to using small children. One woman recounted how she fled the family home when her brother told her she would be next martyr. Unfortunately, her sister was left behind she is sure her brother used her instead.
Nice theory, but I've talked to aliens. Put quickly, the Earth and its inhabitants are simply too boring for their interest.
You mean the 2 to 5 billion the U.S. gives Egypt which probably goes to spending on arms. And that money is going to shake a $14 trillion U.S. economy. Do get a sense of proportion.
The Egyptian government decided that Swine Flu is caused by pigs and ordered all the pigs in the country to be slaughtered. It was easy for them since pigs don't fit into Islam very well. However, the pigs were owned by the Christians who kept them because they allowed them to continue to work in one of the few sectors allowed for them, garbage collection. Once the pigs were gone, the Christians doing garbage collection had to find other ways to survive. The Egyptians then experienced a garbage crisis. That was roughly about 2 years ago, not sure where the garbage goes now.