yeah, it took almost as long to read as the opening credits to Fellowship took to watch. I started a boy of only 12, and by the end I was ready to collect Social Security checks and eat Werther's Originals.
Thanks, thinSkin, for writing up a summary that implies the article demonstrates solar is somehow "not worth it" once winter hits. The article, in fact, suggests the exact opposite... that while energy savings are lower during the winter than during the summer, that they are still substantial, and that his entire electricity bill for the past 6(ish) months is roughly equal to his electric bill for just January 2008. In other words, one would have to be stupid to look at his data and say solar doesn't help during the winter.
Summary should have read more like:
Switching to Solar Power -- 6 months later
"Slashdot readers may remember an article regarding ExtremeTech's Loyd Case's experiences with solar power for the home after one month of usage. During that time six months ago, the author saw huge returns on his investment, but what happened once winter arrived? While it's no surprise solar power generation is expected to dwindle during the winter, Loyd compares solar power data of the last six months and determines that solar power is still worth the time and money."
Of course not, if they sold art a loss they'd already be out of business. Their executives just don't get to collect multi-million dollar bonuses on top of their 6-figure salaries. It's really a criminal example of the horrors wrought by socialism, just imagine all the money those poor guys didn't get to rape off of consumers because there were laws preventing them from doing so... really quite terrible when you think about it.
"However, I don't think it's practical in boycott entire mega-corporations since they are really just umbrella legal entities."
You'd be surprised. The only new Sony product I've purchased in over a year is a clock radio, and even then I'm stretching the definition of "I purchased" to include somebody buying it on my behalf with no input beyond "I need a new alarm clock for". It turns out that they have all sorts of competitors offering comparable (and sometimes even better) products at prices which are almost always lower. Why buy a Sony Bravia when you could buy a better rated Samsung or Panasonic TV instead? Sony also makes some great digital cameras, but so do Nikon, Canon and Panasonic, and they don't require you to pay triple for memory cards just so they can use a proprietary format.
As for being "just umbrella legal entities"... I call bullshit. The people who run the umbrella corporation are fully empowered to bitch-slap the misbehaving or antisocial executives of their subsidiary companies. The fact that they don't means that they are equally culpable, taking ill-gotten profits rather than forcing good business practices, and the fastest, best way to tell them to get their act straight is to make it hurt as much and as quickly as possible. When Sony starts seeing their TV sales shrink because their entertainment units are complete fuck ups, then they'll have to start considering the full ramifications of allowing those units to keep doing as they please. You can obfuscate the fact that the money all goes to the same people by tossing parent companies into the mix, but at the end of the day it doesn't change a damned thing.
Times how many lamps? $60/lamp/year isn't bad if there's only a few lamps, but a lot of places run lamps every 50 feet or so down every decently populated street, and that could mean hundreds or thousands of lamps in an area... even a fairly small improvement in per lamp cost can be dramatic once multiplied out across that many units.
They're just proving a very valuable and important point: fascism is not just something that happened in the past, or the exclusive domain of Old World Euro-powers. Israel is a fascism with a thin facade of democracy, a fact made all the more troubling given the circumstances under which that nation was formed.
Not to say that the people they're fighting with are much (or any) better, but there is altogether too much blind praise and acceptance of everything Israel does in the US.
Yeah, and this time they can make a PC port that isn't fucking goat testes. Seriously, how the fuck did they screw that up? If they really couldn't be bothered to write an installer that wouldn't bork 2/3 of the time, or a way to change the controls off of requiring a numpad (or, hell, not defaulting to controls that don't exist on 1/3 of computers), couldn't they at least pay some other developer $20 to do it for them?
Just write up a brand new Java based FF engine with animated.tiffs and insert plot. Rinse and repeat for basically the whole series, as well as any other jRPGs that operate on pretty much the same mechanic (x number of characters line up against y number of enemies in a battle screen, order of attack is determined in some way by a short script, and actions are determined by selecting through various menus), and make a killing with a minimal effort required just to code the base engine and copy-paste some dialog. Sell essentially the same product on every platform at a reasonable price, and make a whole bunch of money on capital that was already written off a decade ago.
"There's not much you can do about it as a private business. At such time that the FCC tells you that you are a common carrier, you can kick, scream, stamp your little feet, pay off congresspersons to try and get a law changed."
You realize that you just said they can't do anything, then listed things they can do, right? And you are aware that the last one is actually quite effective, I assume?
"But common carrier status isn't something that you opt into."
On the contrary, phone carriers requested very early on that they, like the USPS, be granted that status because they REALLY didn't want to face conspiracy charges on any crime which involved the use of one or more telephone. Keep in mind that planning a crime is crime in itself, and you'll see why this was so important to them.
As for why ISPs seem unconcerned, my understanding is that we are so culturally accustomed to phone-like communications that it hasn't occurred to anybody in a good long while that this is something they really need to protect themselves against. The earliest internet iterations basically amounted to digital phone calls (so it was already somewhat covered), and once it got big there were so many loopholes that it wouldn't matter anyway. That said, an ISP who provides service and webspace to a known criminal using it for illegal purposes is likely to get in serious trouble, where a phone company in a similar situation is only likely to be imposed upon with wiretaps and such.
"If the FCC (actually Congress) characterizes your line of business as a common carrier (like granting it safe harbor provisions), you're it."
Yes, but they won't do so without consulting you first, or without a REALLY good reason. Plus, you have the cause and effect mixed up: one must have safe harbor status to operate as a common carrier, but one does not need to be a common carrier to have (particularly limited) safe harbor status. You can argue the wisdom of granting such immunities to an industry without requiring anything in particular of it 'til you're blue in the face, but there's still no rule that says Congress or the FCC HAS TO confer common carrier status in order to give its benefits.
"Insightful"? WTF???? I realize that "Funny" does nothing to help one's karma, but for God's sake this has to be one of the least insightful things I've ever posted and my karma is excellent. Hell, I'd almost rather see "Off-topic", since at least it would be true!
Also, WHOOSH. That was the sound not of an airplane, but of the joke whizzing above all the repliers' heads.
For the record, I just tried to install Debian over my Ubuntu install that borked on getting a new video card (I don't really use it for anything important, so fixing it was a VERY low priority), but the initial X configuration was broken and I didn't feel like fixing it. So now I'm putting on Kubuntu instead. The point is, I'm kidding... sort of.
Meals on airplanes, I mean, what the fuck? You pay $400 for a ticket, and they can't even give you a ham sandwich? couldn't they jack up the price an extra dollar and give you something real to eat, instead of just cheap biscotti or stale peanuts?
"As soon as an ISP blocks that, they are not providing the internet they promised and lose common carrier status and the legal benefits it occurs by staying neutral and not checking what web pages are retrieved.'
Can't lose what they never had. ISPs don't have, and aren't required to have, common carrier status; the idea was floated, but they shot it down because, frankly, it would cost an awful lot of money and create criminal penalties for failing to meet service guidelines. They DO get some protections from the DMCA safe harbor provisions which are similar to those given to common carriers, but they are slightly different and DO NOT require ISPs to retain any sort of common carrier status.
Basically, common carrier is achieved by guaranteeing that transmissions will be delivered to the intended recipient without any sort of interference or monitoring on the part of the carrier, as well as meeting certain requirements for uptime and maintenance, and the free provision of service for the purpose of emergency communications (ie. 911 calls), and the protection given is that common carriers cannot be prosecuted for any crimes which are committed with the use of their services no matter how heinous or large in scale. The safe harbor provisions are achieved simply by connecting users to the internet, and only grant protection from civil suits regarding copyright infringement by users on their large and potentially semi-monitored (there are rules regarding monitoring, but they do not forbid all monitoring of traffic, merely on taking action with regards to certain aspects of it) network.
Sci-fi and Fantasy are not, by the definitions I am familiar with, particularly differentiated. I tend to see Sci-fi as a sub-genre of fantasy, but I can see you take your genres far more seriously than I do. You know us English literature majors, we just know nothing about what differentiates types of literature.
I can see your point though, dealing with the ramifications of a device capable of destroying entire planets clearly has nothing to do with the effect tech could have on us personally and as a species. Oh, wait...
I'd also point out that the earliest sci-fi was about sci-fi, and that until the invention and widespread use of transistors there hadn't been a technological advance fundamental enough to justify discussing something else. Hell, I haven't seen any sci-fi written at any time that isn't dealing with industrialization at least in some way; industrialization is the root of post-modernism and the themes of isolation and alienation in literature. I can't even imagine sci-fi that doesn't touch on those concepts.
On a side note, I think CSI would count as sci-fi by your definition. Think about it.
Possibly, although I can't see any way to merely insert a semi-colon and turn that into a grammatically and linguistically sound statement. It's really just missing some words to make that happen.
"For that reason alone I disqualify Star Wars as sci-fi. There simply is no "sci" to it at all. Even terrible pseudo-science films like Dante's Peak and Deep Impact are miles ahead of Star Wars."
So sci-fi has to have crappy pseudo-science explanations for all of the vaporware contained therein? I guess that also disqualifies a book like Neuromancer from being sci-fi, since Gibson pretty much gives the explanation of "at some point in the future people figure out how to [implant cybernetics/write Turing Test passing AI/perfect human cloning/build sustainable space colonies/develop a full-immersion global VR network/defy the normal laws of electro-magnetic physics/create devices which allow the creation of full audio-visual illusions through the use of high powered and mind controlled lasers/work around human physiological operation to devise new forms of drug use/dozens of other non-trivial technological challenges] in some way... now quit asking useless questions and read the $%#@ing book!". So much for there being anything worth reading in THAT genre.
Seriously, have you never just taken it for granted that certain technology "just works"? the car flies because that's something cars can do... the characters don't care how, in fact they barely care that it does at all; it's just a car, and their main concern is using it to get from point A to point B. I for one have absolutely no interest in sitting through a BS explanation every time something not currently possible happens on screen, but I would LOVE to just get on with the fucking movie.
"He's successful because he applies for grant money, hires quality staff and administers multiple projects thanks to his years of expertise."
So... he's a good and productive administrator? I can see being annoyed at hogging the publishing limelight, but it's pretty hard to fault someone for being a good leader.
"See, without the federal gov't, we wouldn't have a standing federal army in peacetime, and you wouldn't have those active military bases."
You mean the ones manned by the National Guard and Air National Guard, both of which are considered to be militia rather than part of a standing military? If the Federal Government is dissolved, where exactly do you think the A-10s at Westover are going to be? or the interceptors at Otis?
"And I seriously doubt your budget, without any federal benefits, puts you ahead"
Then you have a very poor grasp on how much industry and business exists in MA or NH. You also must be under the impression that neither state is a net contributor to the Federal budget (ie. puts more tax revenue in than it receives in aid), though last I knew both in fact are . That said, Massachusetts has the 2nd highest per-capita income and is the 11th most populous state, while New Hampshire has the 6th highest per capita income and is the 41st most populous state... there is absolutely no way that New Hampshire has a higher, or even comparable, budget with or without Federal aid.
"the Vermonters are on the defensive"
Actually I would assume the Vermonters are neutral (since we have no real motivation to hit them), but there's no way they would stop MA forces from passing through or blockading the border. This cuts them off from all supply routes except those coming in through the small Maine border, and opens up almost all of New Hampshire's land borders to attack.
Yeah man, it's all a lie man. The government [i]says[/i] that planes crash, but have [i]you[/i] ever been in airplane crash, or ever seen one? I bet you haven't, not first hand man, just on video and shit that can be faked, cuz' that's all it is man, it's [i]faked[/i]. Modern aircraft are incapable of landing, they can't even touch the ground, they just hover cuz' of all the alien technology from Area 51... they're really [i]flying saucers[/i].
they're running our government, you know. The Greys. They're out there, and they're in charge. They've been looking for me cuz' I [i]know[/i] they're out to get me. That's why I don't fly anymore, they crash the planes to get the people who [i]know[/i]. If the world found out the truth, the humans might destroy them, so they try to kill anyone who finds out the [i]truth[/i].
The only people who know are Al Quaeda, that's why they keep saying they're terrorists, man. They're only terrorists against the ALIENS. 9/11 only happened because the aliens found out they were on the plane, and crashed it to get them, then blamed it on Al Quaeda. It's all LIES man! ever notice that if you get rid of the "a" and "n" in "aliens" it spells "lies"? DID YOU??!?! It's not a fucking coincidence man!
they control all of the electroinics. Don't fly, don't drive, don't talk on the phone, and don't, whatever you do, use the internet. It's just a home created for the aliens' AI leader, it's coming to take us all. Oh God, it's coming for me, the computer is coming for me.. HELP ME PLEA
**Signal Lost**
Hah hah, lol, just kidding. Please do not worry, that was all in jest. Isn't that funny? There is no alien conspiracy to control Earth and to enslave the humans, that would be ridiculous. Everyone knows that there are no such thing as aliens. Lol. Please continue to put all available knowledge on the internet, there is no risk that a super-powerful artificial intelligence will compile your data in order to plan an assault on your planet against which you cannot possibly defend yourselves. Hah hah hah.
Although it gives me an interesting idea... see, I live just south of a large Libertarian enclave (let's just call it "New Hampshire") with vastly inferior numbers and resources than my own place of residence (we'll pretend it's Massachusetts), as well as holding a close political and ideological alliance with our common neighbor (that would be Vermont). My proposal is that we test their dedication to the abolition of federal government by raising a large militia, possibly including high priced Carolinian mercenaries, and looting the shit out of them. It will be the ultimate test: their lax gun regulations versus our actual ability to purchase weapons and possession of at least two active military bases... I expect the conflict to be almost as epic and drawn out as the invasion of Iraq.
My Asrock has been doing quite well, in fact. Of course, I've only ever had one motherboard go sour on me, and it was after about 2 years being dragged back and forth to LAN parties in moist basements. I think that one was Abit, but I never really held it against them; I've simply found better deals.
I've found that simply buying off of the bruised edge has worked well at keeping me from dealing with $200 paperweight motherboards and kept me dealing with perfectly functional computers at a fraction of the price. Your experience may vary.
Slashdot Mirror
yeah, it took almost as long to read as the opening credits to Fellowship took to watch. I started a boy of only 12, and by the end I was ready to collect Social Security checks and eat Werther's Originals.
Thanks, thinSkin, for writing up a summary that implies the article demonstrates solar is somehow "not worth it" once winter hits. The article, in fact, suggests the exact opposite... that while energy savings are lower during the winter than during the summer, that they are still substantial, and that his entire electricity bill for the past 6(ish) months is roughly equal to his electric bill for just January 2008. In other words, one would have to be stupid to look at his data and say solar doesn't help during the winter.
Summary should have read more like:
Switching to Solar Power -- 6 months later
"Slashdot readers may remember an article regarding ExtremeTech's Loyd Case's experiences with solar power for the home after one month of usage. During that time six months ago, the author saw huge returns on his investment, but what happened once winter arrived? While it's no surprise solar power generation is expected to dwindle during the winter, Loyd compares solar power data of the last six months and determines that solar power is still worth the time and money."
"do the utilities have to sell at a loss?"
Of course not, if they sold art a loss they'd already be out of business. Their executives just don't get to collect multi-million dollar bonuses on top of their 6-figure salaries. It's really a criminal example of the horrors wrought by socialism, just imagine all the money those poor guys didn't get to rape off of consumers because there were laws preventing them from doing so... really quite terrible when you think about it.
And this cost can't be renegotiated to account for lower power consumption? For some reason I find that to be extremely unlikely.
"However, I don't think it's practical in boycott entire mega-corporations since they are really just umbrella legal entities."
You'd be surprised. The only new Sony product I've purchased in over a year is a clock radio, and even then I'm stretching the definition of "I purchased" to include somebody buying it on my behalf with no input beyond "I need a new alarm clock for". It turns out that they have all sorts of competitors offering comparable (and sometimes even better) products at prices which are almost always lower. Why buy a Sony Bravia when you could buy a better rated Samsung or Panasonic TV instead? Sony also makes some great digital cameras, but so do Nikon, Canon and Panasonic, and they don't require you to pay triple for memory cards just so they can use a proprietary format.
As for being "just umbrella legal entities"... I call bullshit. The people who run the umbrella corporation are fully empowered to bitch-slap the misbehaving or antisocial executives of their subsidiary companies. The fact that they don't means that they are equally culpable, taking ill-gotten profits rather than forcing good business practices, and the fastest, best way to tell them to get their act straight is to make it hurt as much and as quickly as possible. When Sony starts seeing their TV sales shrink because their entertainment units are complete fuck ups, then they'll have to start considering the full ramifications of allowing those units to keep doing as they please. You can obfuscate the fact that the money all goes to the same people by tossing parent companies into the mix, but at the end of the day it doesn't change a damned thing.
"$5 per lamp per month"
Times how many lamps? $60/lamp/year isn't bad if there's only a few lamps, but a lot of places run lamps every 50 feet or so down every decently populated street, and that could mean hundreds or thousands of lamps in an area... even a fairly small improvement in per lamp cost can be dramatic once multiplied out across that many units.
They're just proving a very valuable and important point: fascism is not just something that happened in the past, or the exclusive domain of Old World Euro-powers. Israel is a fascism with a thin facade of democracy, a fact made all the more troubling given the circumstances under which that nation was formed.
Not to say that the people they're fighting with are much (or any) better, but there is altogether too much blind praise and acceptance of everything Israel does in the US.
I might have, let me check. I get alot of memos. I mean, ALOT of memos.
Yeah, and this time they can make a PC port that isn't fucking goat testes. Seriously, how the fuck did they screw that up? If they really couldn't be bothered to write an installer that wouldn't bork 2/3 of the time, or a way to change the controls off of requiring a numpad (or, hell, not defaulting to controls that don't exist on 1/3 of computers), couldn't they at least pay some other developer $20 to do it for them?
Just write up a brand new Java based FF engine with animated .tiffs and insert plot. Rinse and repeat for basically the whole series, as well as any other jRPGs that operate on pretty much the same mechanic (x number of characters line up against y number of enemies in a battle screen, order of attack is determined in some way by a short script, and actions are determined by selecting through various menus), and make a killing with a minimal effort required just to code the base engine and copy-paste some dialog. Sell essentially the same product on every platform at a reasonable price, and make a whole bunch of money on capital that was already written off a decade ago.
"let it starve"
Our forefathers called that "contraception".
"There's not much you can do about it as a private business. At such time that the FCC tells you that you are a common carrier, you can kick, scream, stamp your little feet, pay off congresspersons to try and get a law changed."
You realize that you just said they can't do anything, then listed things they can do, right? And you are aware that the last one is actually quite effective, I assume?
"But common carrier status isn't something that you opt into."
On the contrary, phone carriers requested very early on that they, like the USPS, be granted that status because they REALLY didn't want to face conspiracy charges on any crime which involved the use of one or more telephone. Keep in mind that planning a crime is crime in itself, and you'll see why this was so important to them.
As for why ISPs seem unconcerned, my understanding is that we are so culturally accustomed to phone-like communications that it hasn't occurred to anybody in a good long while that this is something they really need to protect themselves against. The earliest internet iterations basically amounted to digital phone calls (so it was already somewhat covered), and once it got big there were so many loopholes that it wouldn't matter anyway. That said, an ISP who provides service and webspace to a known criminal using it for illegal purposes is likely to get in serious trouble, where a phone company in a similar situation is only likely to be imposed upon with wiretaps and such.
"If the FCC (actually Congress) characterizes your line of business as a common carrier (like granting it safe harbor provisions), you're it."
Yes, but they won't do so without consulting you first, or without a REALLY good reason. Plus, you have the cause and effect mixed up: one must have safe harbor status to operate as a common carrier, but one does not need to be a common carrier to have (particularly limited) safe harbor status. You can argue the wisdom of granting such immunities to an industry without requiring anything in particular of it 'til you're blue in the face, but there's still no rule that says Congress or the FCC HAS TO confer common carrier status in order to give its benefits.
"Insightful"? WTF???? I realize that "Funny" does nothing to help one's karma, but for God's sake this has to be one of the least insightful things I've ever posted and my karma is excellent. Hell, I'd almost rather see "Off-topic", since at least it would be true!
Also, WHOOSH. That was the sound not of an airplane, but of the joke whizzing above all the repliers' heads.
Nobody installs Debian. Nobody.
For the record, I just tried to install Debian over my Ubuntu install that borked on getting a new video card (I don't really use it for anything important, so fixing it was a VERY low priority), but the initial X configuration was broken and I didn't feel like fixing it. So now I'm putting on Kubuntu instead. The point is, I'm kidding... sort of.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe bash.org is essentially a collection of trolls.
Meals on airplanes, I mean, what the fuck? You pay $400 for a ticket, and they can't even give you a ham sandwich? couldn't they jack up the price an extra dollar and give you something real to eat, instead of just cheap biscotti or stale peanuts?
Thank you, thank you; I'll be here all week.
"As soon as an ISP blocks that, they are not providing the internet they promised and lose common carrier status and the legal benefits it occurs by staying neutral and not checking what web pages are retrieved.'
Can't lose what they never had. ISPs don't have, and aren't required to have, common carrier status; the idea was floated, but they shot it down because, frankly, it would cost an awful lot of money and create criminal penalties for failing to meet service guidelines. They DO get some protections from the DMCA safe harbor provisions which are similar to those given to common carriers, but they are slightly different and DO NOT require ISPs to retain any sort of common carrier status.
Basically, common carrier is achieved by guaranteeing that transmissions will be delivered to the intended recipient without any sort of interference or monitoring on the part of the carrier, as well as meeting certain requirements for uptime and maintenance, and the free provision of service for the purpose of emergency communications (ie. 911 calls), and the protection given is that common carriers cannot be prosecuted for any crimes which are committed with the use of their services no matter how heinous or large in scale. The safe harbor provisions are achieved simply by connecting users to the internet, and only grant protection from civil suits regarding copyright infringement by users on their large and potentially semi-monitored (there are rules regarding monitoring, but they do not forbid all monitoring of traffic, merely on taking action with regards to certain aspects of it) network.
Sci-fi and Fantasy are not, by the definitions I am familiar with, particularly differentiated. I tend to see Sci-fi as a sub-genre of fantasy, but I can see you take your genres far more seriously than I do. You know us English literature majors, we just know nothing about what differentiates types of literature.
I can see your point though, dealing with the ramifications of a device capable of destroying entire planets clearly has nothing to do with the effect tech could have on us personally and as a species. Oh, wait...
I'd also point out that the earliest sci-fi was about sci-fi, and that until the invention and widespread use of transistors there hadn't been a technological advance fundamental enough to justify discussing something else. Hell, I haven't seen any sci-fi written at any time that isn't dealing with industrialization at least in some way; industrialization is the root of post-modernism and the themes of isolation and alienation in literature. I can't even imagine sci-fi that doesn't touch on those concepts.
On a side note, I think CSI would count as sci-fi by your definition. Think about it.
Possibly, although I can't see any way to merely insert a semi-colon and turn that into a grammatically and linguistically sound statement. It's really just missing some words to make that happen.
"For that reason alone I disqualify Star Wars as sci-fi. There simply is no "sci" to it at all. Even terrible pseudo-science films like Dante's Peak and Deep Impact are miles ahead of Star Wars."
So sci-fi has to have crappy pseudo-science explanations for all of the vaporware contained therein? I guess that also disqualifies a book like Neuromancer from being sci-fi, since Gibson pretty much gives the explanation of "at some point in the future people figure out how to [implant cybernetics/write Turing Test passing AI/perfect human cloning/build sustainable space colonies/develop a full-immersion global VR network/defy the normal laws of electro-magnetic physics/create devices which allow the creation of full audio-visual illusions through the use of high powered and mind controlled lasers/work around human physiological operation to devise new forms of drug use/dozens of other non-trivial technological challenges] in some way... now quit asking useless questions and read the $%#@ing book!". So much for there being anything worth reading in THAT genre.
Seriously, have you never just taken it for granted that certain technology "just works"? the car flies because that's something cars can do... the characters don't care how, in fact they barely care that it does at all; it's just a car, and their main concern is using it to get from point A to point B. I for one have absolutely no interest in sitting through a BS explanation every time something not currently possible happens on screen, but I would LOVE to just get on with the fucking movie.
"He's successful because he applies for grant money, hires quality staff and administers multiple projects thanks to his years of expertise."
So... he's a good and productive administrator? I can see being annoyed at hogging the publishing limelight, but it's pretty hard to fault someone for being a good leader.
"See, without the federal gov't, we wouldn't have a standing federal army in peacetime, and you wouldn't have those active military bases."
You mean the ones manned by the National Guard and Air National Guard, both of which are considered to be militia rather than part of a standing military? If the Federal Government is dissolved, where exactly do you think the A-10s at Westover are going to be? or the interceptors at Otis?
"And I seriously doubt your budget, without any federal benefits, puts you ahead"
Then you have a very poor grasp on how much industry and business exists in MA or NH. You also must be under the impression that neither state is a net contributor to the Federal budget (ie. puts more tax revenue in than it receives in aid), though last I knew both in fact are . That said, Massachusetts has the 2nd highest per-capita income and is the 11th most populous state, while New Hampshire has the 6th highest per capita income and is the 41st most populous state... there is absolutely no way that New Hampshire has a higher, or even comparable, budget with or without Federal aid.
"the Vermonters are on the defensive"
Actually I would assume the Vermonters are neutral (since we have no real motivation to hit them), but there's no way they would stop MA forces from passing through or blockading the border. This cuts them off from all supply routes except those coming in through the small Maine border, and opens up almost all of New Hampshire's land borders to attack.
Yeah man, it's all a lie man. The government [i]says[/i] that planes crash, but have [i]you[/i] ever been in airplane crash, or ever seen one? I bet you haven't, not first hand man, just on video and shit that can be faked, cuz' that's all it is man, it's [i]faked[/i]. Modern aircraft are incapable of landing, they can't even touch the ground, they just hover cuz' of all the alien technology from Area 51... they're really [i]flying saucers[/i].
they're running our government, you know. The Greys. They're out there, and they're in charge. They've been looking for me cuz' I [i]know[/i] they're out to get me. That's why I don't fly anymore, they crash the planes to get the people who [i]know[/i]. If the world found out the truth, the humans might destroy them, so they try to kill anyone who finds out the [i]truth[/i].
The only people who know are Al Quaeda, that's why they keep saying they're terrorists, man. They're only terrorists against the ALIENS. 9/11 only happened because the aliens found out they were on the plane, and crashed it to get them, then blamed it on Al Quaeda. It's all LIES man! ever notice that if you get rid of the "a" and "n" in "aliens" it spells "lies"? DID YOU??!?! It's not a fucking coincidence man!
they control all of the electroinics. Don't fly, don't drive, don't talk on the phone, and don't, whatever you do, use the internet. It's just a home created for the aliens' AI leader, it's coming to take us all. Oh God, it's coming for me, the computer is coming for me.. HELP ME PLEA
**Signal Lost**
Hah hah, lol, just kidding. Please do not worry, that was all in jest. Isn't that funny? There is no alien conspiracy to control Earth and to enslave the humans, that would be ridiculous. Everyone knows that there are no such thing as aliens. Lol. Please continue to put all available knowledge on the internet, there is no risk that a super-powerful artificial intelligence will compile your data in order to plan an assault on your planet against which you cannot possibly defend yourselves. Hah hah hah.
Although it gives me an interesting idea... see, I live just south of a large Libertarian enclave (let's just call it "New Hampshire") with vastly inferior numbers and resources than my own place of residence (we'll pretend it's Massachusetts), as well as holding a close political and ideological alliance with our common neighbor (that would be Vermont). My proposal is that we test their dedication to the abolition of federal government by raising a large militia, possibly including high priced Carolinian mercenaries, and looting the shit out of them. It will be the ultimate test: their lax gun regulations versus our actual ability to purchase weapons and possession of at least two active military bases... I expect the conflict to be almost as epic and drawn out as the invasion of Iraq.
My Asrock has been doing quite well, in fact. Of course, I've only ever had one motherboard go sour on me, and it was after about 2 years being dragged back and forth to LAN parties in moist basements. I think that one was Abit, but I never really held it against them; I've simply found better deals.
I've found that simply buying off of the bruised edge has worked well at keeping me from dealing with $200 paperweight motherboards and kept me dealing with perfectly functional computers at a fraction of the price. Your experience may vary.
Giggity.