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User: malilo

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Comments · 87

  1. Re:Public vs. private funding on National Planetary Exploration Car Wash and Bake Sale · · Score: 1

    As I recall we ripped out all the passenger rail or sold it to the freight lines long, long ago. Outside of Amtrak (which has to give right-of-way to freight), and light rail, what infrastructure are you referring to?

    As for subsidies, only in America do people think that rail should somehow magically "pay for itself"... the equivalent would be roads "paying for themselves", i.e., all toll roads, all the time. No one (outside of crazy libertarians) thinks that is a good idea. Basically, SOME sunk investment into transportation is necessary every year. Personally, I prefer more rail.

    As an alternative, I would be ok with a pay-everything-as-you-go system that the libertarians want, IF we put policies in place to squeeze the income distribution into a much narrower range - say a factor of 100 total difference between richest and poorest. Otherwise, I don't see how such a system is anything but extremely unfair.

  2. Re:Oh enough with the range whining on Hybrid Car Owners Not Likely To Buy Another Hybrid · · Score: 1

    Well, as stated above, one option is to rent a car for the occasional weekend trip. Considering the cost of a second vehicle, you'd have to really hate renting to want to pour out the devaluation costs, insurance costs, and other maintenance/fuel just to drive your own vehicle to Auntie Sarah's twice a year. Seriously, it's like people that claim they "need" a pickup truck to move stuff and use it once in 4 years to move a mattress set. You really didn't "need" it, but whatever.

  3. Re:You are not innocent on Innocent Or Not, the NSA Is Watching You · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's what the anarchists used to say: "If elections could change your life, they would be illegal."

  4. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 1

    "Appears to be casing houses"... I'm not sure this has been substantiated. I don't find it likely that Trayvon was casing houses in his own damn neighborhood. Like he had a mental to-do list "buy skittles for bro... get a can of tea... oh yeah, rob the neighbors". And you KNOW that if there was a string of break-ins by asians, or white chicks, that you would not report every asian or white chick you saw, because that's a broad-as-hell description. I'm also shocked that people supposedly SAW the thieves in all 8 previous robberies. Probably more like some people got robbed and some people saw black people... and they were associated. Think about it. This is just racist all around and disgusting.

  5. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 2

    A 17 year old is legally a child. He lived with his parents. Calling him an adult would be innacurate. Also, Zimmerman outweighed him by sixty pounds. He brought the gun. If you think about it, the person who was going to end up dead is pretty obvious in retrospect.

  6. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 1

    True, and a good reason to support proven crime-prevention measures like better education, better social safety nets, well-lit streets, and home alarm systems. However, not a good reason to excuse the shooting of an innocent person... we don't just get to say "oops, collateral damage, oh well"... there should have been an arrest that night.

  7. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 1

    If you look at the surveillance tape, it's clear that any injuries must be minor, or extremely unusual, since you can't see them at all. My guess is he did have a few scuff marks, and maybe a bloody nose, from the struggle before he killed Martin. Conjecture, however.

  8. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 1

    Yeah bleeding which is totally not visible on the police tape. Also of note, the police did not use gloves while handling Zimmerman, which they usually do if there's blood.

  9. Re:Error My Ass on NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman 911 Call · · Score: 1, Insightful

    So... you're saying your racist? How exactly would that call go... I saw a black man, he must be guilty of something? Are you capable of self-examination here?

  10. Re:kickstarter for a space probe? on NASA's Kepler Mission Extended For Two Years · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Ding ding ding! Here is the infographic version of the above comment: http://www.republicreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/ROI-1024x460.jpg

  11. Re:I don't think so. on Conservatives' Trust In Science Has Fallen Dramatically Since Mid-1970s · · Score: 2

    Next time just thank me by not sounding like an idiot in the future.

    Love and kisses,

    malilo

  12. Re:I don't think so. on Conservatives' Trust In Science Has Fallen Dramatically Since Mid-1970s · · Score: 4, Informative

    I really am not saying this to be a dick, but both you and a previous poster got this wrong. It's "cast aspersions on" not "cast dispersions on". http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/cast+aspersions+on

  13. Re:The terror threat is low on Congress Capitulates To TSA; Refuses To Let Bruce Schneier Testify · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You are exactly correct. I was on a boating trip with several couples whom I didn't know and people started complaining about TSA. One poor woman ventured her opinion "but I think it's all ok because it keeps us safe"... I pointed out that I could kill plenty of people by wedging a bit of metal into a commuter track. She gave me a horrified look along with "Why would you even think of that?", but I think I made my point.

    The problem is, they've already got a huge chunk of the country, despite mountains of evidence to the contrary, convinced that we are under constant threat of attack. (It's the lizard brain, I guess). So once they put in place checkpoints EVERYWHERE (which yes, is their plan, the fascisty fucks), it will actually be a bit harder to find the evidence you and I have both noted (once everything is surveilled, it will be hard to argue there's been no attacks because no one is trying). Also, I suspect violence would actually go up, as more people joined resistance/anti-fascist/terrorist groups in response to a crackdown. But I'm just speculating.

  14. Re:future weapons ? on Journalist Gets Blasted By the Pentagon's Pain Ray — Twice · · Score: 3, Informative

    5.1 million ly is not that far, actually (twice the distance to Andromeda). A galaxy at that distance would be in our local group, and it's redshift will be dominated by it's local motions, not the Hubble flow.

  15. Re:Converging steps on FAA Bill Authorizes Surveillance Drones Over US · · Score: 1

    Ok, meanwhile in reality I would enjoy very much living in "socialist" Germany. You go enjoy your freedom to be poisoned to death by an unregulated food industry and have housing bubbles destroying the wealth of the middle class. We have many socialist institutions here and yet you seem to be alive and well to complain on the internet about it. I won't deny that they US is taking a troubling turn, but this has nothing to do with "socialism". Again, having government-sponsored healthcare, etc., does not require abdication of human or civil rights, unless you think it's your "right" not to obey the rule of law... which is another issue entirely.

  16. Re:Converging steps on FAA Bill Authorizes Surveillance Drones Over US · · Score: 1

    As a socialist-leaning liberal (as in policies, not that I want to emmulate the communists), I am confused how you can describe a police state (aka totalitarian or fascist state) as being a "socialist heaven"... I think it's a good idea for the community to control certain things (health care, social safety nets like unemployment), but I am absolutely uninterested in controlling everyone's behavior. These things do not have to run in parallel. One can be a socialist and an anti-fascist.

  17. Re:Spending on FAA Bill Authorizes Surveillance Drones Over US · · Score: 1

    Hmm. I usually come down on the side of "Goverments, or at least ours, are SLIGHTLY less awful/evil/corrupt that many of the worst corporations (having in mind Monsanto, etc), but I like your argument here.

  18. Re:Good on Canonical Pulls Kubuntu Personnel Funding · · Score: 2

    I'm also dumping Ubuntu after dealing with the horrible horrible Unity/Gnome3 experience. I'll go use Scientific Linux or something where they don't needlessly change the desktop environment to something shitty just because they think it looks cool.

  19. Re:What was it? on Text Message Brands Quebec Man a Terror Suspect · · Score: 2

    As a librarian though, he's probably at least mildy to the left politically. Ever contributed to the ACLU? Attended any Iraq war protests? I'm not kidding. Happened to my boyfriend too, after attending one anti-war protest. The penalty for being brownish, I guess.

  20. Re:Successful ? on Craigslist Donates $100,000 To the Perl Foundation · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Troll much? You can always tell a made-up complaint because it describes a situation nothing like reality, and has a tone of venomous contempt that is excessive given the situation. People with no money to buy the item? Ok, maybe some people low-ball you but I have found that is easily curtailed by stating. "SERIOUSLY NO LOW-BALL OFFERS PRICE FIRM" on the ad. As for scams I get about 5% spam response rate on most things. They are super-obvious. Guess what. I click delete. I also get several offer emails usually and can only sell to one person! OMG, the horrors of selling something for free.

  21. Re:Easy enough to sign... on Scientists Organize Elsevier Boycott · · Score: 2

    I signed, but I'm a few months from graduating and I'm not worried AT ALL that my advisor will care. It helps that in my field the major journals are published by universities, and not Elsevier (who, needless to say, are a bunch of jerks). Personally, I think people take the "ooh, be careful with that possibly-unpopular opinion you might have, someone might tell your future tenure committee!" way too far.

  22. Re:I'm curious, on Professor Resigns From Stanford To Launch Online Education Project · · Score: 3, Interesting

    An Associate Professor IS tenured. It's what your title is just after getting tenure. How they keep you on the hook "being a good boy/girl" is to dangle full professorship in front of you (it comes with more money, not just a nice title). In most cases, if you don't make full professor a few years after associate, you don't ever get it. BTW, ''Assistant Professor' is what you are called pre-tenure.

  23. Re:Why people want to KILL SOPA? on SOPA and PIPA So Far · · Score: 1

    Look you seem like a nice person but what I'm trying to say is that outside of very very draconian laws (and they would have to be worse than PIPA to actually "stop" the problem), you will ALWAYS have piracy. It's like having a business model that depends on sunshine and being really angry about it raining. There's nothing much to be done about it. Even if you break the internet, people can share on thumb drives! There will always be this drag on the system. I'm NOT pro-piracy, but I am pro-being-realistic. Go spend your time innovating and giving people a reason to buy.

  24. Re:Why people want to KILL SOPA? on SOPA and PIPA So Far · · Score: 2

    I highly doubt that 50,000 people would have even heard of your game, much less downloaded it if it weren't available for free. In fact, some people may have wandered over and paid for a "real" version after trying it, assuming they liked it. I could just as easily assert that piracy HELPED you as not; you have no way of knowing, and breaking the internet is overkill for the problem. And you answered your own problem. Instead of reporting links, why don't you work on a new game? It's a much better ROI than hoping you somehow force people to buy your game by reporting links... I'm guessing that has gotten you very little gains.

  25. Re:Young women don't need makeup.... on US Watchdog Bans Photoshop Use In Cosmetics Ads · · Score: 2

    I'm also the carrier of two X chromosomes, and no, I'm not ugly. We do exist, but since it would be asinine to point out what gender you are in every post, this silly idea that there are no women on /. continues.

    Anyway, I wear light makeup most days I go to work because it simply looks more professional to do so. I mean some powder and mascara and lip gloss, not really heavy makeup. I'd love to go without but until that becomes the norm I'll probably continue to conform to what is the minimum standard on this one, at least at work.

    I will add that I was slathering on makeup as a teenager (I mean at 14!! jeez) because it's what my peers/mother encouraged me to do and it was TOTALLY not necessary, I was actually quite lucky and had perfect skin. It's weird how what becomes "normal" can so easily override logic in these cases.

    Finally, I agree that you can more or less do the following and your skin will thank you for it (man or woman):

    Avoid excessive alcohol and caffeine

    SUNSCREEN/Avoid sun

    drink lots of water

    eat well

    Don't smoke