...only informed, conscious gamers will be dissuaded by this type of asshattery. CoD kids using their mom's credit card at the local GameStop will continue to purchase the regurgitated crap they've been playing for years.
The pool of gamers (and people in general) who actually give a shit is dwindling rapidly.
Minor corrections: The Aurora theater shooting had the assailant use both a shotgun and an AR-15 rifle, though neither was an "assault rifle". That much is definitely confirmed.
Also, the facts coming from the Newtown massacre are wildly inconsistent. It is agreed that there was a shotgun recovered from the trunk of the assailant's car, but he was carrying two pistols and an AR-15. Whether he opened fire with the pistol(s) or the rifle really is a moot point -- the victims are still dead and the town is still shaken. I doubt we'll get a clear answer from the media, even though I'm 100% positive the coroner and forensic scientists know exactly what kinds of ammunition (and therefore weapons) were used.
"Assault Weapon" isn't even a term which was a buzz word; it was not used within or in reference to the firearms community/industry until the AWB of the early 90's. We know that bayonet lugs, adjustable stocks, pistol grips and extended magazines have nothing to do with effecting the lethality of a firearm. Furthermore, the crusade against these so-called "assault weapons" has been largely proven to be in vain; less than 3% of murders are committed with a rifle, and there have been zero cases of a legally-owned, Class III automatic weapon used for criminal purposes. All of the diatribes from DiFi, Bloomberg, and Obama, etc. are not really directed at challenging gun violence anyway. They're platitudes used in an attempt to sway the mindset of the public toward giving up their freedoms, rather than honestly addressing the source of the problem(s)...but you probably already understand this.
I also find the American gun debate to be frustrating. There are people who are too extreme on both sides of the argument, but I would rather err on the side of freedoms than to irrevocably and futilely remove them.
Outlawing guns will not reduce the supply of guns already available on the black market; likely it will merely increase them. Between the people who would not give up their unregistered weapons and future theft of any weapons which do remain legal, the pool will not suddenly dry up. Add to the mix smuggling and illegal production of new firearms and you're easily going to outpace law enforcement's capabilities to retrieve and destroy them.
The reason there can be no effective legislation via "Assault Weapons Ban" type of restrictions is that they're completely arbitrary and have already been proven to be completely ineffective. Automatic Weapons have been heavily restricted since 1934, only gaining further restrictions since -- and not one case of a legally-owned Class III firearm being used for violence has been found. What difference does a magazine capacity make, whether it is 5, 7, 10, 30, or 100+ rounds? What difference does an adjustable or collapsible butt stock make? How about a bayonet lug; I haven't seen too many bayonet-mounted-on-rifle stories in the news. The arguments are old, stale and moot.
If there was legislation that was drafted which actually made sense, rather than the usual Diane FeinStein or Bloomberg type of BS, pro-gun advocates like myself might actually consider it...but none of the ideas being brought forth have any merit. They're simply not worth considering because rather than addressing any issues of violence, or crime, or motives of criminals who perpetrate these types of heinous incidents, they attempt to restrict the freedoms guaranteed to us by the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution. The pro-gun mantra "gun control is not about guns, it is about control" is too true to be ignored.
...shall not be infringed is a statement for which too many legislators have no real respect.
That's the only one I can think of at all. Battlefield 2 had the Chinese as an enemy, but there was no storyline so it wasn't clear...it was just US Marines vs. Chinese Army (or equivalent).
So enjoying a steak from time to time could be defined as "arrogant"? I'm not suggesting a 72oz. slab of cow with a pitcher of beer, baked potato with extra bacon, and a plate of white baby seal eyes as an appetizer...that'd be gluttonous, wasteful, etc. One should not necessarily correlate simple food or sleeping on the floor with humility; you can still be a cocky douchebag while maintaining a simple, balanced diet and spartan living.
It just so happens to be one of their best songs, IMHO, which is from my favorite Maiden album. I like the speed & dynamics of Aces High a little better, but 2MtM is a great song.
Randal: A construction job of that magnitude would require a helluva lot more manpower than the Imperial army had to offer. I'll bet there were independent contractors working on that thing: plumbers, aluminum siders, roofers. Dante: Not just Imperials, is what you're getting at. Randal: Exactly. In order to get it built quickly and quietly they'd hire anybody who could do the job. Do you think the average storm trooper knows how to install a toilet main? All they know is killing and white uniforms. Dante: All right, so even if independent contractors are working on the Death Star, why are you uneasy with its destruction? Randal: All those innocent contractors hired to do a job were killed- casualties of a war they had nothing to do with. (notices Dante's confusion) All right, look-you're a roofer, and some juicy government contract comes your way; you got the wife and kids and the two-story in suburbia-this is a government contract, which means all sorts of benefits. All of a sudden these left-wing militants blast you with lasers and wipe out everyone within a three-mile radius. You didn't ask for that. You have no personal politics. You're just trying to scrape out a living.
I got ticketed outside Nashville too, just a flesh-and-bone trooper instead of a speed camera. Had been driving in a 45mph construction zone for several miles when the cones all cleared up & the road opened up again. I resumed my slightly-higher-than-the-limit speed ~62mph (in a 55) and got pulled over, ticked for 17mph over the limit. Officer stated "You're in a construction zone." -- "Well sir, I don't see any cones or workers." -- "They're just over the next hill." Yeah...sure they are, fucker.
Then he gave me a $50 ticket. I laughed at the sum...in my communist home state of NJ that'd probably be nearer to $200!
Nothing like putting some road cones down in an area for a couple of years, slapping in some mobile (read: vehicle-mounted) speed cameras and reaping the benefits.
The Baltimore Beltway is notorious for being one giant speed trap. In all of my commuting around that area, I've yet to see any construction zone actually have any workers.
I know a couple of guys who wear those regularly. They both have degenerative eye diseases (the disorder name escapes me currently), but even these guys can't bear to have them in for more than ~12 hours or so, and that is with regular doses of eye drops/lubricant, etc.
This is what I was thinking. You'd still need a ventilator to filter away the toxic gases and particulates, but auto-dimming contact lenses would be pretty bitchin'!
We didn't apologize for inciting violence in Benghazi, but we did apologize for one person exercising his first amendment rights to make a [horribly produced] video which supposedly caused such attacks -- then we backpedaled and said it was a terrorist attack. Don't forget that we allowed an American Ambassador and 3 others to be killed without taking any action, because when 2 military General Officers tried to act in the defense of our people they were relieved of command. How's that for "strong foreign policy"?
I didn't say he knew all the foreign policy answers, but even his ignorance is better than Obama apologizing for everything. One can learn to not be ignorant...it's a far more difficult task to unlearn appeasement and unnecessary apologies.
I'm in a similar position, though I don't ever call myself a Republican, Democrat or any other affiliated party -- I just go with fiscal conservatism, military strength and a stern foreign policy.
I foresaw the lack of good GOP candidates over a year and a half ago. Called it just like it went down; Romney got the (R) nod and lost in the end to the incumbent. Nothing really surprising at all. I believe Romney had the economic know-how to help get the economy back on track, and the desire to see an America not weakened by diluted foreign policy and appeasement of others. I don't believe it's too much to ask to have a government who doesn't stifle business and doesn't let other nations step all over us.
The bottom line is that the GOP shot themselves in their collective feet. Obama ran a decent campaign, but Romney and the Republican Party showed just how behind-the-times they really are.
I'm in a suburban district of Fairfax County, VA. Voted at a local elementary school, where there was practically no line at all - maybe a total of 40 voters between currently selecting and waiting in line to select. Showed official gov't issued picture ID, the volunteers verified my address and full name, etc. No problem whatsoever.
I did most of my research regarding the Presidential election, so I failed to do my share of homework for local/state issues -- I considered the roughly $150 million within the bonds section and was split somewhere in the middle of that spending. I'm fairly conservative, but I also understand the need to spend money on roadways and infrastructure -- especially in a busy area like DC/MD/VA.
I also elected to use the paper AccuTron ballot, rather than the digital one. It was just a faster approach, and I felt like I could take more time to read over the options and make a less-impulsive selection.
...can never be stopped by boundaries of "That's a silly idea" or "That'll never work".
Thank you nerds, techies, geeks and other misanthropic, misunderstood outcasts!
Even though this project may just be a game, this type of devotion to science and technological innovation is how we have advanced as a species.
There's a difference between taking out a mortgage and running a government budget. You factor in costs of the mortgage, insurance, possible maintenance and repairs when you buy a home (if you are smart). I have a home, I have a budget which is balanced, I have savings and retirement plans for myself and my wife. Save times when I've held a car loan or mortgage, I have never been in debt; those loans were also planned and budgeted properly to ensure I didn't go upside down.
The government has contracts, most recently which are paid through short-term, performance-based metrics. They also have to account for maintenance and emergency services, just like a household. They've got bills to pay on a regular basis as well. The problem with government budgeting is that they say "We've got $xxx to spend. We need to spend every dollar, or we might have a reduced budget next year." This is the opposite mentality of businesses which have the mindset of "If we make $xxx but only spend half of that, we just made a profit."
If you believe managing a budget and not overspending over the long-term is not a viable economic practice, I'd hate to see your balance book. And to call that idea liberal is way off the mark -- you might want to check history before you go flouting shit you don't understand.
"Government budget crisis"?
When governments excessively spend money they don't have, it is inevitably creating an "economic crisis" down the line. Proper budgeting means you don't spend more money than the sum of your tax revenue. If you DO happen to need that extra coverage, you effectively "IOU" the people and spend less during the next fiscal period to compensate. The numbers may be massive, the figures vast and more complex than your average checkbook, but math is still math.
My statement was in relevance to the last sentence of the article summary. The damage has already been done by the Greek government. Even if they did now seek to prosecute the tax evaders, they would still be in a financial mess; the white-collar criminals would merely be the next scapegoat in the line. In a nutshell, I'm pointing the finger at the Greek gov't for mismanaging the money that they did take in, rather than being responsible and accountable with the funds of their people.
Revenue of some form or another is a must for any government. We can't expect a large country to have all volunteers, can we? However, effectively taking the majority of any population's money is ludicrous and irresponsible -- what function(s) could rationally use that much money?
Many of the people with the most money in America are not investing and creating jobs like they would be during better times. Corporate taxes are mind-bogglingly expensive. Government regulation stepped in to try to correct a problem -- and they did to some extent -- but came out with bigger ones. When 50-60% of your startup funds for a new company go straight into overhead, fees and taxes, you're not going to be as likely to start a new venture. You can just sit on that money, put it into less risky investments, etc. Or you take that money overseas and build a business elsewhere. Many people who work regular jobs for a living and are more or less "check to check" don't understand how overregulation and overtaxation can stifle growth.
Taxing your way out of an economic crisis is only feasible in the [very] short term.
Poor economic choices on the part of the Greek gov't are to blame here...but they're too busy screwing over their people to accept responsibility and make progress toward actual corrections.
Mommy and daddy don't have a clear understanding about money or economics any more than congresscritters or teachers do. If they did, they'd teach their children that formal and informal educations combined are the only way they'll really have a successful future beyond a "pawn's mate".
There are multi-level failures within the American education system. It starts with parents ultimately not understanding how to really help their children succeed and it is further exacerbated by poor management of money from local agencies all the way up through the federal Department of Education. There are also societal values at the lower- and middle-classes which can cause education which is received to be ineffective; take for example the middle-class priority of being good at a sport and getting scouted for a team in high school over academic and economic educations, or in poorer neighborhoods the priority on being tough or able to survive on the streets instead of learning something in school which might elevate them out of that cesspool.
If your family can't teach you, your teachers can't teach you, and the gov't can't teach you...then how do you learn? Vicious cycle, if you ask me.
Slashdot Mirror
...only informed, conscious gamers will be dissuaded by this type of asshattery. CoD kids using their mom's credit card at the local GameStop will continue to purchase the regurgitated crap they've been playing for years.
The pool of gamers (and people in general) who actually give a shit is dwindling rapidly.
Minor corrections: The Aurora theater shooting had the assailant use both a shotgun and an AR-15 rifle, though neither was an "assault rifle". That much is definitely confirmed.
Also, the facts coming from the Newtown massacre are wildly inconsistent. It is agreed that there was a shotgun recovered from the trunk of the assailant's car, but he was carrying two pistols and an AR-15. Whether he opened fire with the pistol(s) or the rifle really is a moot point -- the victims are still dead and the town is still shaken. I doubt we'll get a clear answer from the media, even though I'm 100% positive the coroner and forensic scientists know exactly what kinds of ammunition (and therefore weapons) were used.
"Assault Weapon" isn't even a term which was a buzz word; it was not used within or in reference to the firearms community/industry until the AWB of the early 90's. We know that bayonet lugs, adjustable stocks, pistol grips and extended magazines have nothing to do with effecting the lethality of a firearm. Furthermore, the crusade against these so-called "assault weapons" has been largely proven to be in vain; less than 3% of murders are committed with a rifle, and there have been zero cases of a legally-owned, Class III automatic weapon used for criminal purposes. All of the diatribes from DiFi, Bloomberg, and Obama, etc. are not really directed at challenging gun violence anyway. They're platitudes used in an attempt to sway the mindset of the public toward giving up their freedoms, rather than honestly addressing the source of the problem(s)...but you probably already understand this.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/POM_Wonderful_Presents:_The_Greatest_Movie_Ever_Sold
Excellent mockumentary, btw. In the spirit of "Super Size Me", if you're already familiar with Spurlock's work.
I also find the American gun debate to be frustrating. There are people who are too extreme on both sides of the argument, but I would rather err on the side of freedoms than to irrevocably and futilely remove them.
...shall not be infringed is a statement for which too many legislators have no real respect.
Outlawing guns will not reduce the supply of guns already available on the black market; likely it will merely increase them. Between the people who would not give up their unregistered weapons and future theft of any weapons which do remain legal, the pool will not suddenly dry up. Add to the mix smuggling and illegal production of new firearms and you're easily going to outpace law enforcement's capabilities to retrieve and destroy them.
The reason there can be no effective legislation via "Assault Weapons Ban" type of restrictions is that they're completely arbitrary and have already been proven to be completely ineffective. Automatic Weapons have been heavily restricted since 1934, only gaining further restrictions since -- and not one case of a legally-owned Class III firearm being used for violence has been found. What difference does a magazine capacity make, whether it is 5, 7, 10, 30, or 100+ rounds? What difference does an adjustable or collapsible butt stock make? How about a bayonet lug; I haven't seen too many bayonet-mounted-on-rifle stories in the news. The arguments are old, stale and moot.
If there was legislation that was drafted which actually made sense, rather than the usual Diane FeinStein or Bloomberg type of BS, pro-gun advocates like myself might actually consider it...but none of the ideas being brought forth have any merit. They're simply not worth considering because rather than addressing any issues of violence, or crime, or motives of criminals who perpetrate these types of heinous incidents, they attempt to restrict the freedoms guaranteed to us by the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution. The pro-gun mantra "gun control is not about guns, it is about control" is too true to be ignored.
Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising?
That's the only one I can think of at all. Battlefield 2 had the Chinese as an enemy, but there was no storyline so it wasn't clear...it was just US Marines vs. Chinese Army (or equivalent).
Women are for reproduction and nothing more.
The monkeys, they are for important scientific experiments...and sex.
So enjoying a steak from time to time could be defined as "arrogant"? I'm not suggesting a 72oz. slab of cow with a pitcher of beer, baked potato with extra bacon, and a plate of white baby seal eyes as an appetizer...that'd be gluttonous, wasteful, etc. One should not necessarily correlate simple food or sleeping on the floor with humility; you can still be a cocky douchebag while maintaining a simple, balanced diet and spartan living.
It just so happens to be one of their best songs, IMHO, which is from my favorite Maiden album. I like the speed & dynamics of Aces High a little better, but 2MtM is a great song.
Nice Iron Maiden reference, UL!
Randal: A construction job of that magnitude would require a helluva lot more manpower than the Imperial army had to offer. I'll bet there were independent contractors working on that thing: plumbers, aluminum siders, roofers.
Dante: Not just Imperials, is what you're getting at.
Randal: Exactly. In order to get it built quickly and quietly they'd hire anybody who could do the job. Do you think the average storm trooper knows how to install a toilet main? All they know is killing and white uniforms.
Dante: All right, so even if independent contractors are working on the Death Star, why are you uneasy with its destruction?
Randal: All those innocent contractors hired to do a job were killed- casualties of a war they had nothing to do with. (notices Dante's confusion) All right, look-you're a roofer, and some juicy government contract comes your way; you got the wife and kids and the two-story in suburbia-this is a government contract, which means all sorts of benefits. All of a sudden these left-wing militants blast you with lasers and wipe out everyone within a three-mile radius. You didn't ask for that. You have no personal politics. You're just trying to scrape out a living.
I got ticketed outside Nashville too, just a flesh-and-bone trooper instead of a speed camera. Had been driving in a 45mph construction zone for several miles when the cones all cleared up & the road opened up again. I resumed my slightly-higher-than-the-limit speed ~62mph (in a 55) and got pulled over, ticked for 17mph over the limit. Officer stated "You're in a construction zone." -- "Well sir, I don't see any cones or workers." -- "They're just over the next hill." Yeah...sure they are, fucker.
Then he gave me a $50 ticket. I laughed at the sum...in my communist home state of NJ that'd probably be nearer to $200!
Nothing like putting some road cones down in an area for a couple of years, slapping in some mobile (read: vehicle-mounted) speed cameras and reaping the benefits.
The Baltimore Beltway is notorious for being one giant speed trap. In all of my commuting around that area, I've yet to see any construction zone actually have any workers.
That is, indeed, the disease to which I was referring. Thanks for chiming in :) I hate when names and words escape me.
I know a couple of guys who wear those regularly. They both have degenerative eye diseases (the disorder name escapes me currently), but even these guys can't bear to have them in for more than ~12 hours or so, and that is with regular doses of eye drops/lubricant, etc.
For welding goggles? Kick ass!
This is what I was thinking. You'd still need a ventilator to filter away the toxic gases and particulates, but auto-dimming contact lenses would be pretty bitchin'!
We didn't apologize for inciting violence in Benghazi, but we did apologize for one person exercising his first amendment rights to make a [horribly produced] video which supposedly caused such attacks -- then we backpedaled and said it was a terrorist attack. Don't forget that we allowed an American Ambassador and 3 others to be killed without taking any action, because when 2 military General Officers tried to act in the defense of our people they were relieved of command. How's that for "strong foreign policy"?
I didn't say he knew all the foreign policy answers, but even his ignorance is better than Obama apologizing for everything. One can learn to not be ignorant...it's a far more difficult task to unlearn appeasement and unnecessary apologies.
I'm in a similar position, though I don't ever call myself a Republican, Democrat or any other affiliated party -- I just go with fiscal conservatism, military strength and a stern foreign policy.
I foresaw the lack of good GOP candidates over a year and a half ago. Called it just like it went down; Romney got the (R) nod and lost in the end to the incumbent. Nothing really surprising at all. I believe Romney had the economic know-how to help get the economy back on track, and the desire to see an America not weakened by diluted foreign policy and appeasement of others. I don't believe it's too much to ask to have a government who doesn't stifle business and doesn't let other nations step all over us.
The bottom line is that the GOP shot themselves in their collective feet. Obama ran a decent campaign, but Romney and the Republican Party showed just how behind-the-times they really are.
I'm in a suburban district of Fairfax County, VA. Voted at a local elementary school, where there was practically no line at all - maybe a total of 40 voters between currently selecting and waiting in line to select. Showed official gov't issued picture ID, the volunteers verified my address and full name, etc. No problem whatsoever.
I did most of my research regarding the Presidential election, so I failed to do my share of homework for local/state issues -- I considered the roughly $150 million within the bonds section and was split somewhere in the middle of that spending. I'm fairly conservative, but I also understand the need to spend money on roadways and infrastructure -- especially in a busy area like DC/MD/VA.
I also elected to use the paper AccuTron ballot, rather than the digital one. It was just a faster approach, and I felt like I could take more time to read over the options and make a less-impulsive selection.
...can never be stopped by boundaries of "That's a silly idea" or "That'll never work".
Thank you nerds, techies, geeks and other misanthropic, misunderstood outcasts!
Even though this project may just be a game, this type of devotion to science and technological innovation is how we have advanced as a species.
There's a difference between taking out a mortgage and running a government budget. You factor in costs of the mortgage, insurance, possible maintenance and repairs when you buy a home (if you are smart). I have a home, I have a budget which is balanced, I have savings and retirement plans for myself and my wife. Save times when I've held a car loan or mortgage, I have never been in debt; those loans were also planned and budgeted properly to ensure I didn't go upside down.
The government has contracts, most recently which are paid through short-term, performance-based metrics. They also have to account for maintenance and emergency services, just like a household. They've got bills to pay on a regular basis as well. The problem with government budgeting is that they say "We've got $xxx to spend. We need to spend every dollar, or we might have a reduced budget next year." This is the opposite mentality of businesses which have the mindset of "If we make $xxx but only spend half of that, we just made a profit."
If you believe managing a budget and not overspending over the long-term is not a viable economic practice, I'd hate to see your balance book. And to call that idea liberal is way off the mark -- you might want to check history before you go flouting shit you don't understand.
"Government budget crisis"? When governments excessively spend money they don't have, it is inevitably creating an "economic crisis" down the line. Proper budgeting means you don't spend more money than the sum of your tax revenue. If you DO happen to need that extra coverage, you effectively "IOU" the people and spend less during the next fiscal period to compensate. The numbers may be massive, the figures vast and more complex than your average checkbook, but math is still math.
My statement was in relevance to the last sentence of the article summary. The damage has already been done by the Greek government. Even if they did now seek to prosecute the tax evaders, they would still be in a financial mess; the white-collar criminals would merely be the next scapegoat in the line. In a nutshell, I'm pointing the finger at the Greek gov't for mismanaging the money that they did take in, rather than being responsible and accountable with the funds of their people.
Revenue of some form or another is a must for any government. We can't expect a large country to have all volunteers, can we? However, effectively taking the majority of any population's money is ludicrous and irresponsible -- what function(s) could rationally use that much money?
Many of the people with the most money in America are not investing and creating jobs like they would be during better times. Corporate taxes are mind-bogglingly expensive. Government regulation stepped in to try to correct a problem -- and they did to some extent -- but came out with bigger ones. When 50-60% of your startup funds for a new company go straight into overhead, fees and taxes, you're not going to be as likely to start a new venture. You can just sit on that money, put it into less risky investments, etc. Or you take that money overseas and build a business elsewhere. Many people who work regular jobs for a living and are more or less "check to check" don't understand how overregulation and overtaxation can stifle growth.
Taxing your way out of an economic crisis is only feasible in the [very] short term.
Poor economic choices on the part of the Greek gov't are to blame here...but they're too busy screwing over their people to accept responsibility and make progress toward actual corrections.
Mommy and daddy don't have a clear understanding about money or economics any more than congresscritters or teachers do. If they did, they'd teach their children that formal and informal educations combined are the only way they'll really have a successful future beyond a "pawn's mate".
There are multi-level failures within the American education system. It starts with parents ultimately not understanding how to really help their children succeed and it is further exacerbated by poor management of money from local agencies all the way up through the federal Department of Education. There are also societal values at the lower- and middle-classes which can cause education which is received to be ineffective; take for example the middle-class priority of being good at a sport and getting scouted for a team in high school over academic and economic educations, or in poorer neighborhoods the priority on being tough or able to survive on the streets instead of learning something in school which might elevate them out of that cesspool.
If your family can't teach you, your teachers can't teach you, and the gov't can't teach you...then how do you learn? Vicious cycle, if you ask me.