Ahh, so why didn't they do anything against Saddam? Didn't Bush claim that almost every Iraqi hated him? Yet they wait to start fighting until the Americans come?
2 reasons: 1- there are many ways to keep a people controlled, including incredible brutality 2- the Sunnis were the ones armed, mostly. And they had quite a few privileges under Saddam, and were much better off that their Shiaa brethren.
I like the James Madison comment: The Constitution preserves "the advantage of being armed which Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation...(where) the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms." The Federalist #46.
Look at where we are today: The US invades Iraq. Every Iraqi is armed, with a AK47/74 or even RPG-7. See the problems the US army has in controlling the country. Therefore, the civilians bearing arms works very well. See also the Swiss.
Now let's look at the US today. Imagine that Iraq invades the US and manages to wipe its regular army. Then what? Bow down to the invader? Hell no, right? So you pick up a gun and get into a guerilla cell. But where can you get that damn gun? The government had convinced everyone that they weren't responsible enough to own guns....
Guess he hasn't played Deus Ex either. Hands-down one of the best storylines in a game, RPG, FPS, or otherwise.
Well it depends. I fully agree that Marathon has by far the best storyline of a FPS. Deus Ex, which also has an incredible storyline, can't be considered an FPS. It's this hybrid genre, the "stealth" type. Part FPS, part RPG, part tactical shooter, part adventure.
As for an RPG storyline, I consider Ultima V to be the true king of the hill.
EBay deserves a mention, but as a failed and mostly fsck'd way to do reputation management. I trust EBay seller's ratings about as far as I can toss a Buick underhand with my lame arm.
Wow. I have to disagree on this one:
If a seller has a bad rating, do you go on buying with your eyes closed? No you don't. This doesn't mean that a good rating means you shouldn't worry. What it means is that if the guy has a bad rating, then "your mileage may vary", and you should (and will) definitely be more careful.
He doesn't touch or mention at all 2 very effective reputation management (and creation/destruction) systems online at the moment: EBay's seller ratings and BizRate's merchant ratings.
Both use the very powerful feedback system of actual customers being able to effectively swing a vendor's reputation. Basically instead of slow word of mouth (how long did it take for LL Bean to get its reputation? years of word-of-mouth), both EBay and BizRate allow incredibly quick dissemination of someone's preceived reputation (and unlike many others, have good safety checks and are heavily self-policing -- just like any reputation management should be).
Ultima I: ALiR has been cancelled
on
25 Best Linux Games
·
· Score: 3, Informative
Peroxide, the company from Denmark that started the Ultima I port to the new generation, decided to create a completely new game instead and calls it now "Era".
... is the bottom part of the article!:
Seatbelts won't be the only things taken off once the pilot on Naked-Air switches off the sign.
Passengers aboard a May 3 chartered Boeing 727-200 flight from Miami to Cancun, Mexico, dubbed "Naked-Air", will be allowed to get their kit off and move around the cabin au naturel once the plane reaches cruising altitude, Reuters reports.
Castaways Travel, a Houston-based travel agency which specialises in "clothing-optional trips", is offering what it bills as the world's first all-nude flight, for $US499 ($840) return.
Though mile-high club antics are barred on the flight, the possibility of encountering turbulence during the flight could make for some compromising stumbles.
Now I'd love to get a seat on that flight...
Experience has the biggest impact on TCO
on
Linux Is Cheaper
·
· Score: 2
I said it years ago and I still stand by it: if you have a lot of experience in one system, stick with it unless there's a major reason to switch (significant performance gains, etc...).
In an article written in 1997, here's what I said to a journalist: [...] agrees there are other, better ways to choose a server than benchmark results. If you're doing CGI processing and database serving, get a fast CPU and "Go with the platform you know best." Why? "Every platform has its quirks, but if you know it, chances are you'll be able to optimize it and make it as good as any other." [...] "Benchmarks will never tell you what hardware/software to buy. They will tell you how effective your latest tweak has been."
Right. While this guy allegedly stole documents, ESR only published documents. ESR never did steal them, or at least he has a good enough alibi.:-)
Which begets the question: is the a legal recourse for punishing those who publish confidential documents, but never did sign a confidentiality agreement in order to get them?
Yes, but indeed if you're really looking to benchmark only, comparing a row-based database engine with a column-based one is like comparing an apple to an orange. Both are fruits, both give you calories, but they're quite different.
Now as we're going off-topic from the original submission, one could benchmark KDB with Sybase IQ Multiplex. Here you're talking about 2 column-based db engines. In my testing, KDB is indeed up to an order of magnitude (10x) faster than Sybase IQ which is itself 2 orders of magnitude (100x) faster than row-based database engines.
However, as the article in the post says, benchmarks don't give the whole story.
Apart from the usual learning curve issues and available management tools (which KDB sadly lacks compared to Sybase IQ), there is one fundamental difference between the 2 db engines (and Oracle, DB2, Sybase ASE, etc...):
KDB is single-process, and does not pool memory. I'm not saying this is bad, but it makes for very interesting architectural issues when designing a system. For example, if you're going to use KDB, you're better off with the fastest possible single-CPU system. The best platform for KDB is probably the fastest Intel P4 Xeon, dual-processor, and as much RAM as possible on the machine. One processor will be used exclusively for KDB, the other for the OS. To grow, you'll implement a farm of those.
On the other hand, the other major DB engines generally perform much better in multi-CPU systems such as 16-way Sun servers. They pool the memory and use all the CPUs you'll give them. This makes for a more expensive single system, but an easier implementation if your application is larger than what a single dual Intel box can provide. In such a case, KDB will need one write engine and multiple read engines, significant storage pooling issues, etc...
Anyway, one last point regarding column-based database engines: they are certainly amazing for reporting and most read commands. Where they lose to row-based engines is in inserts, and in selects that return data from a large number of columns. In the former case, you trick KDB and Sybase IQ into performing batch inserts (where the loading of columns will only be "wasted" once per batch). In the latter case, you're going to be hurt with KDB and Sybase IQ whatever you do, as they'll have to load in memory all the columns out of which you need the data.
Bottom line:
If you need OLTP (lots of inserts/updates) and aren't worried about extreme speeds, go for Oracle, Sybase ASE, DB2, etc...
If you need fast reporting with very quick time to market, go for Sybase IQ Multiplex.
If you need the absolute ultimate in reporting speed and have the time and resource to apply to it, go for KDB.
Richard Garriott added Ettins in the Ultima series of computer RPGs. The Ettins in those games are 2-headed giant types, relatively intelligent, wielding clubs.
Re: Even Horizon is NOT a sci-fi movie
on
Review: Solaris
·
· Score: 1
Personally, I loved Event Horizon.
It is in my opinion the best "terror" movie ever made. Not "horror", not "sci-fi".
It was the first movie in a very long time that kept me totally captivated. In the middle of the movie I noticed that I was so engrossed in it that I was sitting upright literally close to the edge of my seat. I took a deep breath and told myself "this is just a movie, relax".
The amazing thing in Even Horizon is how you are made to dread the half-second that you KNOW will be coming that is so gory that you'll be disgusted. The only problem is that you don't know when that will happen. The movie never overwhelms you with gore up to the point of insensibility.
I've recommended that movie to many, and everyone who saw it told me that it was disgusting, hellish, terrorizing, but that it was unbelievably executed.
Easy to check if you have a gif downloaded: instead of being a real gif, the "dummy.gif" file is in fact a script that logs in your session the fact that you do accept and read popups, and then returns image/gif headers and the binary gif data sucked from file.
Then on the next page, all he needs to do is check the session object for that popup-ok flag.
No, OSX does not allow simultaneous users yet. That is, as you pointed out, a great feature of XP.
Hopefully soon that will be a reality in OSX. This "bug" has been on the wishlist for some time now in the developer area of Apple, as well as the remote connectivity a la XWindows.
You look like you're the ideal candidate for methanol-based RC cars. Granted they're incredibly expensive ($400 or so), but they're big (1.5 feet) and they're ridiculously fast (about 40MPH). I have one and it's a total blast. The only real problem is maintenance. You musn't be afraid of grime...:)
To answer your first comment: How can 75PS make a car drive 311 km/h? (Specially with a weight of roundabout 3 tons)
Notice that they have one integrated "in-wheel" motor per wheel. Each motor achieves 73 PS. And there are 8 wheels, so that's 73*8 = 584 PS If you combine those 584 horses with the extremely aerodynamic look of the car (close to teardrop shaped), the top speed of 311 km/h would not surprise me. Once you get those 3 tons moving, most of the work is to combat friction.
For question 2 regarding the range when driving at max speed, we can only speculate. My guess is that if it can do 300km at a constant 100km/h, then at 311 km/h you probably can't do much more than 60-80kms. Which means that you'll rip through those in about 15 minutes.:-) But the question is: while we can wonder who can manage a constant 311 km/h for 15 minutes on asphalt, what is the acceleration cost for stop-and-go traffic which is much more common these days?
Doesn't look like this site (lasiktruth) does add much information, considering what's already available in this discussion thread. All it says, from what I can decipher, is:
1- People notice more halos around strong light sources (mostly in high-contrast nighttime) 2- Some people don't get perfect results (i.e. no guaranteed 20/20) 3- The guy who wanted to bring the technology to market was trying really hard to shirk responsibility if anything failed.
But the study this site refers to is from 1999. So I strongly suggest reading the discussion here for an update...
I'm sorry, it was too early in the morning for me:-) You're correct of course, I have 3.27 gears. Also since the 4.6 is so crappy on the low end torque, it would certainly make a difference with your 5.0.
Even though my stock tires still got decent grip upon launch at 2,400 rpm, I quickly switched to Potenza S02 Pole Position tires. The difference in cornering performance is staggering, but of course they're very expensive and don't last too long.
With 12,000 miles and one heavy duty track day (over 100 miles at 110 degrees at Willow Springs), the tires are starting to break down.
Floor it? Is the sole purpose of this to simply do a burnout or possibly a 360? This will not get the car out of the hole faster then a controlled start. With advice like that I can see why they electronically limited this.
No, the purpose of this is to launch the car with the engine already at an RPM level that is in the max torque range. Basically you trade off wasted rubber and a bad transmission experience for the 10th of a second or so that you would have wasted to bring the engine up to max power. Even though the 3.2 liter engine is awesome across the RPM band, it is clearly weaker under 4000 rpm. I know, my wife has one (an SMGII).
I have a measly ~250RWHP Mustang with a 2.73 differential. Dumping the clutch (or faster then normal release) at anything higher then 2000 rpms on street tires sends the car into almost an immediate sideways condition. At the track its worse, without a concrete launchpad its about 1500 rpm's and asphalt you can not avoid spin at any RPM.
That's weird. I have a '99 Mustange cobra, ~260RWHP, 2.73 gears. Maybe it's thanks to the independent rear suspension (IRS) that your model may not have, but the perfect launch in my cobra is at 2,400 RPM. There is very little no wheel spin, and the car is almost instantly at the sweet and sick power range starting at 4,000 rpm.
At the track, if you warm your tires properly, you should be able to go even higher. In any case, with the proper 2,400 rpm launch you can easily smoke Carreras. The M3 though will eat your lunch, considering that it has more power on the low range ( Which is why I totally disagree with the AU article posted to start this discussion: the guy correctly states that one could potentially shift like the SMG II, but he incorrectly assumes that one will do that not only consistently on the upshift, but will also never blow a heel & toe downshift. That's totally wrong.
The only little gripe about the SMG II is that sometimes you wish it would start the downshift a little quicker. There is a split-second delay between your request for a downshift and the start of the neutral->throttle blip->downshift sequence.
Fragbait, there's only one problem with the strategy you propose: the US can't go back to full-fledged isolationism in the same way as before WWI because of its dependence upon... you guessed it, oil.
Someone in a post earlier was getting sick of people giving oil as the main reason for all the wars lately, but it's true. Until the US gets its oil dependence alleviated by either developing new power sources (fusion, etc...) or reducing its oil consumption, it will HAVE to keep its trade routes open to the rest of the world. It will also have to keep them secure, and try to get the best deal in all the negotiations regarding that trade.
Therefore, the usual bully attitude which works rather well. "I have planes, I have tanks, put up and shut up."
Some say that the US strategy goes beyond just securing oil supply, it attempts control over the world economy through the IMF and WTO. However, I would contend that it is not US strategy, but the strategy of the few robber barons of the new economy, holders of the world's gold reserves, who make US and EEC world policy. It's those people who aim for globalism, for a world economy.
There is one major flaw in that strategy, in that it is geared towards control of the masses by the few. And that will ultimately not work, or at least it won't work in the longer term. We need, as a race (the human race that is), to go beyond the individualism and think about humanity itself. Only then will we transcend the current cycles of wars for land, religion or resources.
MacOS has had that for a while. It works ok. In fact, by default in OS 10.1 it speaks modal error dialogs. It surprised me the first time this happened.
In Chris Roberts' game series, Wing Commander IV, in the first cutscene movie, a guy in a bar tells Mark Hammill the following:
"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance"
It's not about losing civil liberties. Nothing has changed after Sept 11. We always had and always will have evil around. The only difference is that over the centuries the destructive power of the individual has grown.
s/\w+=/Funny=/g is exactly what I thought.
I am totally bewildered by the pathetic moderation ability of some Slashdot readers, and it can only get worse as Slashdot turns more and more mainstream. Maybe time for some way to ensure that moderators can read and understand English?
It's not all about selecting a random value from a pulldown as soon as a post looks large, while browsing at +2.
Damn!
Slashdot Mirror
Ahh, so why didn't they do anything against Saddam? Didn't Bush claim that almost every Iraqi hated him? Yet they wait to start fighting until the Americans come?
2 reasons:
1- there are many ways to keep a people controlled, including incredible brutality
2- the Sunnis were the ones armed, mostly. And they had quite a few privileges under Saddam, and were much better off that their Shiaa brethren.
I like the James Madison comment:
The Constitution preserves "the advantage of being armed which Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation...(where) the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms." The Federalist #46.
Look at where we are today:
The US invades Iraq. Every Iraqi is armed, with a AK47/74 or even RPG-7. See the problems the US army has in controlling the country. Therefore, the civilians bearing arms works very well. See also the Swiss.
Now let's look at the US today. Imagine that Iraq invades the US and manages to wipe its regular army. Then what? Bow down to the invader? Hell no, right? So you pick up a gun and get into a guerilla cell. But where can you get that damn gun? The government had convinced everyone that they weren't responsible enough to own guns....
Well it depends. I fully agree that Marathon has by far the best storyline of a FPS. Deus Ex, which also has an incredible storyline, can't be considered an FPS. It's this hybrid genre, the "stealth" type. Part FPS, part RPG, part tactical shooter, part adventure.
As for an RPG storyline, I consider Ultima V to be the true king of the hill.
Wow. I have to disagree on this one:
If a seller has a bad rating, do you go on buying with your eyes closed? No you don't. This doesn't mean that a good rating means you shouldn't worry. What it means is that if the guy has a bad rating, then "your mileage may vary", and you should (and will) definitely be more careful.
Therefore, eBay ratings do add value.
He doesn't touch or mention at all 2 very effective reputation management (and creation/destruction) systems online at the moment:
EBay's seller ratings and BizRate's merchant ratings.
Both use the very powerful feedback system of actual customers being able to effectively swing a vendor's reputation.
Basically instead of slow word of mouth (how long did it take for LL Bean to get its reputation? years of word-of-mouth), both EBay and BizRate allow incredibly quick dissemination of someone's preceived reputation (and unlike many others, have good safety checks and are heavily self-policing -- just like any reputation management should be).
Peroxide, the company from Denmark that started the Ultima I port to the new generation, decided to create a completely new game instead and calls it now "Era".
It's totally unrelated to Ultima I.
See it at:
http://www.peroxide.dk/era/
Seatbelts won't be the only things taken off once the pilot on Naked-Air switches off the sign.
Passengers aboard a May 3 chartered Boeing 727-200 flight from Miami to Cancun, Mexico, dubbed "Naked-Air", will be allowed to get their kit off and move around the cabin au naturel once the plane reaches cruising altitude, Reuters reports.
Castaways Travel, a Houston-based travel agency which specialises in "clothing-optional trips", is offering what it bills as the world's first all-nude flight, for $US499 ($840) return.
Though mile-high club antics are barred on the flight, the possibility of encountering turbulence during the flight could make for some compromising stumbles.
Now I'd love to get a seat on that flight...
I said it years ago and I still stand by it: if you have a lot of experience in one system, stick with it unless there's a major reason to switch (significant performance gains, etc...).
In an article written in 1997, here's what I said to a journalist:
[...] agrees there are other, better ways to choose a server than benchmark results. If you're doing CGI processing and database serving, get a fast CPU and "Go with the platform you know best." Why? "Every platform has its quirks, but if you know it, chances are you'll be able to optimize it and make it as good as any other." [...] "Benchmarks will never tell you what hardware/software to buy. They will tell you how effective your latest tweak has been."
Right. :-)
While this guy allegedly stole documents, ESR only published documents. ESR never did steal them, or at least he has a good enough alibi.
Which begets the question: is the a legal recourse for punishing those who publish confidential documents, but never did sign a confidentiality agreement in order to get them?
Yes, but indeed if you're really looking to benchmark only, comparing a row-based database engine with a column-based one is like comparing an apple to an orange. Both are fruits, both give you calories, but they're quite different.
Now as we're going off-topic from the original submission, one could benchmark KDB with Sybase IQ Multiplex. Here you're talking about 2 column-based db engines. In my testing, KDB is indeed up to an order of magnitude (10x) faster than Sybase IQ which is itself 2 orders of magnitude (100x) faster than row-based database engines.
However, as the article in the post says, benchmarks don't give the whole story.
Apart from the usual learning curve issues and available management tools (which KDB sadly lacks compared to Sybase IQ), there is one fundamental difference between the 2 db engines (and Oracle, DB2, Sybase ASE, etc...):
KDB is single-process, and does not pool memory. I'm not saying this is bad, but it makes for very interesting architectural issues when designing a system. For example, if you're going to use KDB, you're better off with the fastest possible single-CPU system. The best platform for KDB is probably the fastest Intel P4 Xeon, dual-processor, and as much RAM as possible on the machine. One processor will be used exclusively for KDB, the other for the OS. To grow, you'll implement a farm of those.
On the other hand, the other major DB engines generally perform much better in multi-CPU systems such as 16-way Sun servers. They pool the memory and use all the CPUs you'll give them. This makes for a more expensive single system, but an easier implementation if your application is larger than what a single dual Intel box can provide. In such a case, KDB will need one write engine and multiple read engines, significant storage pooling issues, etc...
Anyway, one last point regarding column-based database engines: they are certainly amazing for reporting and most read commands. Where they lose to row-based engines is in inserts, and in selects that return data from a large number of columns.
In the former case, you trick KDB and Sybase IQ into performing batch inserts (where the loading of columns will only be "wasted" once per batch). In the latter case, you're going to be hurt with KDB and Sybase IQ whatever you do, as they'll have to load in memory all the columns out of which you need the data.
Bottom line:
If you need OLTP (lots of inserts/updates) and aren't worried about extreme speeds, go for Oracle, Sybase ASE, DB2, etc...
If you need fast reporting with very quick time to market, go for Sybase IQ Multiplex.
If you need the absolute ultimate in reporting speed and have the time and resource to apply to it, go for KDB.
Richard Garriott added Ettins in the Ultima series of computer RPGs.
The Ettins in those games are 2-headed giant types, relatively intelligent, wielding clubs.
Personally, I loved Event Horizon.
:-)
It is in my opinion the best "terror" movie ever made. Not "horror", not "sci-fi".
It was the first movie in a very long time that kept me totally captivated. In the middle of the movie I noticed that I was so engrossed in it that I was sitting upright literally close to the edge of my seat. I took a deep breath and told myself "this is just a movie, relax".
The amazing thing in Even Horizon is how you are made to dread the half-second that you KNOW will be coming that is so gory that you'll be disgusted. The only problem is that you don't know when that will happen. The movie never overwhelms you with gore up to the point of insensibility.
I've recommended that movie to many, and everyone who saw it told me that it was disgusting, hellish, terrorizing, but that it was unbelievably executed.
Which IMHO is the point of the movie.
Easy to check if you have a gif downloaded:
instead of being a real gif, the "dummy.gif" file is in fact a script that logs in your session the fact that you do accept and read popups, and then returns image/gif headers and the binary gif data sucked from file.
Then on the next page, all he needs to do is check the session object for that popup-ok flag.
Pretty standard stuff, actually.
No, OSX does not allow simultaneous users yet.
That is, as you pointed out, a great feature of XP.
Hopefully soon that will be a reality in OSX. This "bug" has been on the wishlist for some time now in the developer area of Apple, as well as the remote connectivity a la XWindows.
You look like you're the ideal candidate for methanol-based RC cars. Granted they're incredibly expensive ($400 or so), but they're big (1.5 feet) and they're ridiculously fast (about 40MPH). :)
I have one and it's a total blast. The only real problem is maintenance. You musn't be afraid of grime...
To answer your first comment:
:-)
How can 75PS make a car drive 311 km/h? (Specially with a weight of roundabout 3 tons)
Notice that they have one integrated "in-wheel" motor per wheel. Each motor achieves 73 PS. And there are 8 wheels, so that's 73*8 = 584 PS
If you combine those 584 horses with the extremely aerodynamic look of the car (close to teardrop shaped), the top speed of 311 km/h would not surprise me. Once you get those 3 tons moving, most of the work is to combat friction.
For question 2 regarding the range when driving at max speed, we can only speculate. My guess is that if it can do 300km at a constant 100km/h, then at 311 km/h you probably can't do much more than 60-80kms. Which means that you'll rip through those in about 15 minutes.
But the question is: while we can wonder who can manage a constant 311 km/h for 15 minutes on asphalt, what is the acceleration cost for stop-and-go traffic which is much more common these days?
Heh. Didn't mean to slam you at all :-)
I just had high hopes regarding that site, and when I read it I found that there was little content of value.
Doesn't look like this site (lasiktruth) does add much information, considering what's already available in this discussion thread. All it says, from what I can decipher, is:
1- People notice more halos around strong light sources (mostly in high-contrast nighttime)
2- Some people don't get perfect results (i.e. no guaranteed 20/20)
3- The guy who wanted to bring the technology to market was trying really hard to shirk responsibility if anything failed.
But the study this site refers to is from 1999. So I strongly suggest reading the discussion here for an update...
I'm sorry, it was too early in the morning for me :-)
You're correct of course, I have 3.27 gears. Also since the 4.6 is so crappy on the low end torque, it would certainly make a difference with your 5.0.
Even though my stock tires still got decent grip upon launch at 2,400 rpm, I quickly switched to Potenza S02 Pole Position tires. The difference in cornering performance is staggering, but of course they're very expensive and don't last too long.
With 12,000 miles and one heavy duty track day (over 100 miles at 110 degrees at Willow Springs), the tires are starting to break down.
Floor it? Is the sole purpose of this to simply do a burnout or possibly a 360? This will not get the car out of the hole faster then a controlled start. With advice like that I can see why they electronically limited this.
No, the purpose of this is to launch the car with the engine already at an RPM level that is in the max torque range. Basically you trade off wasted rubber and a bad transmission experience for the 10th of a second or so that you would have wasted to bring the engine up to max power.
Even though the 3.2 liter engine is awesome across the RPM band, it is clearly weaker under 4000 rpm. I know, my wife has one (an SMGII).
I have a measly ~250RWHP Mustang with a 2.73 differential. Dumping the clutch (or faster then normal release) at anything higher then 2000 rpms on street tires sends the car into almost an immediate sideways condition. At the track its worse, without a concrete launchpad its about 1500 rpm's and asphalt you can not avoid spin at any RPM.
That's weird. I have a '99 Mustange cobra, ~260RWHP, 2.73 gears. Maybe it's thanks to the independent rear suspension (IRS) that your model may not have, but the perfect launch in my cobra is at 2,400 RPM. There is very little no wheel spin, and the car is almost instantly at the sweet and sick power range starting at 4,000 rpm.
At the track, if you warm your tires properly, you should be able to go even higher. In any case, with the proper 2,400 rpm launch you can easily smoke Carreras. The M3 though will eat your lunch, considering that it has more power on the low range (
Which is why I totally disagree with the AU article posted to start this discussion: the guy correctly states that one could potentially shift like the SMG II, but he incorrectly assumes that one will do that not only consistently on the upshift, but will also never blow a heel & toe downshift. That's totally wrong.
The only little gripe about the SMG II is that sometimes you wish it would start the downshift a little quicker. There is a split-second delay between your request for a downshift and the start of the neutral->throttle blip->downshift sequence.
come on guys:
save the base64 data into a file called 'xx'
then:
cat xx | perl winxpactkey > xpkeygen.zip
then unzip the xpkeygen.zip file.
Fragbait, there's only one problem with the strategy you propose: the US can't go back to full-fledged isolationism in the same way as before WWI because of its dependence upon... you guessed it, oil.
Someone in a post earlier was getting sick of people giving oil as the main reason for all the wars lately, but it's true. Until the US gets its oil dependence alleviated by either developing new power sources (fusion, etc...) or reducing its oil consumption, it will HAVE to keep its trade routes open to the rest of the world. It will also have to keep them secure, and try to get the best deal in all the negotiations regarding that trade.
Therefore, the usual bully attitude which works rather well. "I have planes, I have tanks, put up and shut up."
Some say that the US strategy goes beyond just securing oil supply, it attempts control over the world economy through the IMF and WTO. However, I would contend that it is not US strategy, but the strategy of the few robber barons of the new economy, holders of the world's gold reserves, who make US and EEC world policy. It's those people who aim for globalism, for a world economy.
There is one major flaw in that strategy, in that it is geared towards control of the masses by the few. And that will ultimately not work, or at least it won't work in the longer term. We need, as a race (the human race that is), to go beyond the individualism and think about humanity itself. Only then will we transcend the current cycles of wars for land, religion or resources.
Dreaming on...
MacOS has had that for a while. It works ok. In fact, by default in OS 10.1 it speaks modal error dialogs. It surprised me the first time this happened.
In Chris Roberts' game series, Wing Commander IV, in the first cutscene movie, a guy in a bar tells Mark Hammill the following:
"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance"
It's not about losing civil liberties. Nothing has changed after Sept 11. We always had and always will have evil around. The only difference is that over the centuries the destructive power of the individual has grown.
s/\w+=/Funny=/g is exactly what I thought. I am totally bewildered by the pathetic moderation ability of some Slashdot readers, and it can only get worse as Slashdot turns more and more mainstream. Maybe time for some way to ensure that moderators can read and understand English? It's not all about selecting a random value from a pulldown as soon as a post looks large, while browsing at +2. Damn!