What's the rest of the world going to do if the US tells them to shove off?
Probably build their own industries and economies and continue to exist independently of America. This wouldn't be without its bumps and bruises, but people won't just lay down and die.
Of course, that'll never happen: America needs the rest of the world too. Globalization makes sense: it's cheaper, and that's all a business cares about. Sustainability, on the other hand, just isn't there. Though we don't want to directly acknowledge that fact, of course. Heaven forbid if our fat and lazy lifestyles change!
The WTO would be a good idea, if they had the right ideals in mind. But they exist to further corporate growth, which has no bearing on any other measure of health... like that of a society or its environment.
If they did have the right goals, they wouldn't have this kind of stigma. But then again, they wouldn't have the kind of support they have either.
People and populations just aren't relevant from a corporate perspective.
Ladies and gentlement, this is what happens in America: people can't see two feet beyond their borders, and conclude that there's nothing else out there.
America is not the world. It is, in fact, just a small part of it.
That's a good point. Perhaps, if MS failed with its Windows 95 roll-out (which might have happened), OS/2 Warp would have gained power and we'd all be using OS/2 XP or something. And if that were the case, IBM sure as hell wouldn't be funding Linux development.:)
It's a dumb question to begin with. The fact is, anything could have happened without Microsoft as an obstacle. Apple wouldn't be what it is today without Microsoft.
That said, perhaps the "ease of use" of the Macintosh environment has made it trivial to learn and therefore insignificant as a valued skill. If anyone can use an Apple, there is no desire to hold on to that knowledge and stick with them, since it is so poorly valued. Usability is a double-edged sword.
And what about plaintext? If it can do that, that's when I'll start to consider one of these. And if it can render HTML (even simple HTML 2), even better.
Well, you have to understand that a corporation is also a product of the people. Some people get together and want to do something: build railroads, cars, sell cheese, whatever. And they form a group, and begin doing this, and making money from it. At this level, the distinction between 'the people' and 'the corporation' can get blurry. A corporation is recognized as its own entity, but it is comprised of people... the very same people who are represented by their government.
And industry is good for the people, but only up to a certain point. I agree that when a corporation starts to abuse other people, this should not be tolerated. This seems obvious, but problems arise when money gets in the way... profit seems to cloud the vision of many otherwise conscientious people.
It has to be understood that, in the current system, a corporation exists SOLELY TO MAKE PROFIT, and it will do anything it can to make that happen.
Don't think that that comment justifies your position in any way. Being "persecuted" doesn't make you right, it just means you're unpopular.
Obviously government intervention is necessary. Think of the function of the government, what it ultimately represents (THE PEOPLE) and where its loyalties lie. A government must maintain a balance between the populace and industry, and MAINTAIN a free market. A free market won't happen naturally: it's just the nature of such privately owned tyrannies as corporations, which must be kept in check. And unfortunately, I don't think the US is doing too good a job of it.
If you leave them alone for too long, the corporation will become the government--simply because it's profitable to do so.
Injecting it into my bloodstream is bad enough, but doing that and then subjecting it to a strong magnetic field--which it is extremely responsive to--seems especially troublesome.
You mean like cooking food with strong electromagnetic radiation seems especially troublesome?
Are you afraid that the highly magnetic nanofoam in your bloodstream might suddenly be torn from your veins when the magnet malfunctions?
"Nothing to see here. Apple did this 10 years ago... [but failed miserably]"
"You can get an Apple for only $1000 more..." "OMG this has an Apple logo! It must be good!"
Heaven forbid anyone mention the One Holy Company's failures for once...
Mental simulation. Synthetic intelligence. Your computer would be powerful enough to not only do flat speech recognition, but would be able to have its own natural language engine... all processed in real-time.
Slashdot Mirror
What's the rest of the world going to do if the US tells them to shove off?
Probably build their own industries and economies and continue to exist independently of America. This wouldn't be without its bumps and bruises, but people won't just lay down and die.
Of course, that'll never happen: America needs the rest of the world too. Globalization makes sense: it's cheaper, and that's all a business cares about. Sustainability, on the other hand, just isn't there. Though we don't want to directly acknowledge that fact, of course. Heaven forbid if our fat and lazy lifestyles change!
The WTO would be a good idea, if they had the right ideals in mind. But they exist to further corporate growth, which has no bearing on any other measure of health... like that of a society or its environment.
If they did have the right goals, they wouldn't have this kind of stigma. But then again, they wouldn't have the kind of support they have either.
People and populations just aren't relevant from a corporate perspective.
WTO means "World Trade Organization."
Or perhaps you forgot that?
so the WTO is writing our laws for us...
Yeah, that's kind of the point. We're ARE all on the same planet, after all. Why should the American population be any more significant than another?
Wow, your arrogance is amazing.
Ladies and gentlement, this is what happens in America: people can't see two feet beyond their borders, and conclude that there's nothing else out there.
America is not the world. It is, in fact, just a small part of it.
I guess they figure that we are bad gamblers...
I didn't know that gambling is a 'skill.' Isn't gambling, by its very definition, relying (almost) completely on luck?
It happens in SimCity. :)
What? Haven't you heard of the BIBLE?
That's a good point. Perhaps, if MS failed with its Windows 95 roll-out (which might have happened), OS/2 Warp would have gained power and we'd all be using OS/2 XP or something. And if that were the case, IBM sure as hell wouldn't be funding Linux development. :)
It's a dumb question to begin with. The fact is, anything could have happened without Microsoft as an obstacle. Apple wouldn't be what it is today without Microsoft.
That said, perhaps the "ease of use" of the Macintosh environment has made it trivial to learn and therefore insignificant as a valued skill. If anyone can use an Apple, there is no desire to hold on to that knowledge and stick with them, since it is so poorly valued. Usability is a double-edged sword.
It looks nice, but what are all those funny letters...?
And what about plaintext? If it can do that, that's when I'll start to consider one of these. And if it can render HTML (even simple HTML 2), even better.
Oh, how heroic! The urban information warrior, foiling the efforts of Megacorporations at every turn! How brave! How daring!
Grow up.
Nah, don't buy a Mac because of the software... any other computer can do the same thing.
Buy a Mac because they are "hip" and "cool." Mmm, marketing.
Well, you have to understand that a corporation is also a product of the people. Some people get together and want to do something: build railroads, cars, sell cheese, whatever. And they form a group, and begin doing this, and making money from it. At this level, the distinction between 'the people' and 'the corporation' can get blurry. A corporation is recognized as its own entity, but it is comprised of people... the very same people who are represented by their government.
And industry is good for the people, but only up to a certain point. I agree that when a corporation starts to abuse other people, this should not be tolerated. This seems obvious, but problems arise when money gets in the way... profit seems to cloud the vision of many otherwise conscientious people.
It has to be understood that, in the current system, a corporation exists SOLELY TO MAKE PROFIT, and it will do anything it can to make that happen.
Don't think that that comment justifies your position in any way. Being "persecuted" doesn't make you right, it just means you're unpopular.
Obviously government intervention is necessary. Think of the function of the government, what it ultimately represents (THE PEOPLE) and where its loyalties lie. A government must maintain a balance between the populace and industry, and MAINTAIN a free market. A free market won't happen naturally: it's just the nature of such privately owned tyrannies as corporations, which must be kept in check. And unfortunately, I don't think the US is doing too good a job of it.
If you leave them alone for too long, the corporation will become the government--simply because it's profitable to do so.
Before you all start moaning that EU is anti-American...
Moaning? People are cheering. This is Slashdot; America isn't held in very high regard.
Sure, points for creativity, but: ...?
I keep Dictionary.com's Word of the Day as my home page. How else would I learn how to mock the ignorant without them knowing it?
Injecting it into my bloodstream is bad enough, but doing that and then subjecting it to a strong magnetic field--which it is extremely responsive to--seems especially troublesome.
:)
You mean like cooking food with strong electromagnetic radiation seems especially troublesome?
Are you afraid that the highly magnetic nanofoam in your bloodstream might suddenly be torn from your veins when the magnet malfunctions?
Hate to break it to you, but X-Men isn't real!
Ah, yes, this is a very insightful post. Especially considering that you didn't say a thing.
Wow, what a brain-dead idea. Sounds like it was designed by management committee.
Instead of starting with core infrastructure, they start with... registering domain names. Yeah.
Don't worry: nobody cares.
Mental simulation. Synthetic intelligence. Your computer would be powerful enough to not only do flat speech recognition, but would be able to have its own natural language engine... all processed in real-time.
Sweet.