What about people like me, who are damn near invisible online? That's why I like having my last name be a 4 letter word which shows up in the dictionary as a noun, a verb, and is very similar to the last name of a few dozen famous people.
Keep a copy of the receipt? At the very least, that'll make sure that legit customers get their money's worth. And while I am well aware of the fact that a thief could buy one legit copy, steal ten, then have 10 other guys go back and re-cert each stolen DVD. But at the very least, it forces them to buy one legit copy. But since they already have that legit copy, they could probably just as easily make a duplicate disk as it is to steal it from a store. I was under the impression that a measure like this was to stop petty theft, is it not?
Since most (all other?) democratic countries do allow their citizens to vote (meaningfully) for their leaders
Umm, you looked at Canada lately? We have a very backwards way of electing our government. We have 308 electoral ridings. In each riding, you vote for your Member of Parliament. Some of them represent a national political party, such as the Liberals, Conservatives, or the NDP, whereas others represent local parties, such as the Marijuana party, or simply run as independents. In each riding, the candidate with the most votes wins the riding. In some ridings, this means as little as 40% of the voters. In a country where only about 60% of people vote, that's precious few people who voted for them in a given riding. After the voting is completed, the party with the most MPs gets a chance to make the government. In Canada, it is very much possible for a government to form a majority (>50% or 159 seats) with considerably less than half the popular vote.
Actually, I meant the original to be the file which you were copying. In the case of VCRs and tape recordings off of TV, the original is the data you got from the cable / soundwaves.
Actually, the difference is facility and complete duplication. In taping music from the radio, and recording TV programs, you get a tape or VHS of reduced quality than the original. However, in downloading a song, you get a complete bit to bit transcription of the original song. Not only that, it's considerably easier, as you can do it remotely while someone else hosts it. All you have to do is download it. Compare that to the method of waiting for a good song to come on the radio, hitting the Play + Record button, and then hoping that you got a good selection. Or even doing it via VHS.
However, that isn't to say I disagree with you. Until the music / movie industries are willing to accept the fact that people are going to download, and they try and charge people more for a broken product, people will continue to download. And yes, DRM is broken. You're giving the user the locked chest and the key. Even if you tell people they can only unlock it for reasons a, b, and c, people will still unlock it for d - z, simply because they can.
To be honest with you, I'm not a fan of any PDA. Straight or gay. And for the record, I'm a straight white male. With a girlfriend. I figure any sort of affection can be toned down in public such that no one is too offended.
Actually, the best theory I've heard on that was the prevalence of legal abortion in the 70s, leading to less situations where children are born (where they probably shouldn't have) and thus less of them turning to crime. Of course, that's just a theory.
Where were you when I had mod points? This is actually an incredible idea. To add to it, charge people based on the mileage of their cars. Or keep a mini-computer inside it to keep track of how much energy it received over time. However, it'd take decades to get it working. And since people are so short-term based, I have very little hope in anything like this happening.
They do have plans to set extend the O-Train further north and south, as well as install an east-west route, but those plans got the boot when they realized that the current planned routes (going west from U of O to Bayview, then south to South Keys; just south of Orleans to Barrhaven) would barely be used. They still screw everyone who lives west of Kanata, east of Orleans, and south of Nepean.
Because of places like Ottawa. The OC Transpo system, while very nice, is still lacking quite a bit. They barely run it out to some of the suburbs, like Stittsville, and they don't even bother giving anywhere west of that anything other than a rural express route. I know this is anecdotal, but there are plenty of places where public transit isn't viable.
Sad part is, my uncle's in a similar issue. He met his wife via the internet, and got married in the Philippines, where she lives. However, he now has to wait almost half a year to clear all the various issues with immigration to Canada, and emigration from the Philippines. The thing that really steams him is that, in Canada, a huge amount of people cheat the system, by either falsely declaring refugee status, and then disappearing off the grid, or by lying through their teeth to get in.
The biggest problem is that racial minorities are just that. Minorities. As such, most games are geared toward the majority. Which, in North America, is your white middle-class suburbanite teen. And the only thing that a lot of them know about minorities is the stereotypes. It's so much easier to make money feeding on people's preconceived notions that worry about educating them.
The real solution? Dilute North America so far that we all become one race.
But that's just a waste of public resources. By having those cameras, you create a situation where either people will either a) be honest through paranoia, or b) speed and get the fines. Surely you can't say that it's a negative thing to have something that attempts to deter speeding and punishes those who, and I emphasize this, break the law. Yes they're making money on it. It's part of their job to find ways to make sure that they can afford to continue doing the things we really need the police to do, like enforce various other laws.
Eh. It's hard to get a decent paper. As an Ottawan, the two main papers I have access to are the Citizen (a fairly leftist paper) and the Sun (a more centrist paper). From my personal experience, the Sun tends to be more critical of the government on all levels. However, like any paper, they're fairly sensationalist. I tend to resort to the web and radio for news.
While I think you have a good point, part of our major adaptation has been the ability to adapt the environment to fit our purposes. And even if we continue to muck around with the environment, the conditions that follow that will allow us to adapt even more. It's a cycle. We fuck with the system, the system fucks with us, and eventually, we have a set of humans better equipped to deal with the circumstances.
Another alternative is that they accept that man-made emissions are causing this recent climate change, but they're showing other evidence that the popular theories have yet to account for. If your theory can't account for the evidence, then you have to change your theory to fit the new evidence, as well as the old.
I have two major problems with the IPCC at the moment. First off, (and someone please prove me wrong on this one [with links]), I have heard reports that the IPCC is tailoring the report to fit the summary. Secondly, their best theories still do not account for all the evidence, especially the evidence that would (to a person with no scientific background) prove them wrong.
That isn't to say that they aren't right, they just aren't right enough yet. They have to be able to fully explain the things that seem to counter their evidence.
Finally, I have every right to be sceptical of anyone and everyone who tries to tell me something. The onus is on you to fully convince me that you are correct.
This time, you can place the blame squarely at the feet of the artists.
But which artists? Who the complained to the CPCC about mp3 players? It might be one or two big names, or it could be a huge chunk. For all you or I know, they could be doing this on their own, without asking what the artists think.
I'm just gonna throw a curveball your way. What about people like me who hate mp3 players, but love mp3s? I went out and bought myself an mp3 player. Best of both worlds. I rip all my music to my computer, or download it (I listen to it when I'm on the computer at any given time), burn 700 megs of mp3s on a CD, and listen to that while on the go. I also have the incentive to go out and buy real CDs, since it's still compatible with my player, and as a bonus, works on my car's stereo system as well. Not only that, but I completely avoid the issue of DRM, unless I happen to buy a bad CD. But as of yet, I've had no major issues.
My conclusion? I'm in a win-win situation for the things that I consider important. And no, knowing the name of the song is not important to me, nor is customizable playlists, or size issues. You'd have to do a lot of convincing to get me to switch to an mp3 player.
Public education is perfectly fine, I'm just saying that private is better in some ways. And of course, neither are perfect. I've seen just as many jackasses as geniuses come out of the Ontario (Canada) public education board, where we fund both public and Catholic schools. In fact, I graduated high school in 2006, and am currently attending university. I'm just wonder why people are berating this guy for making a legitimate point about getting people off the public tax dollar who can afford to.
I think you're completely misunderstanding the post. He's saying that by getting kids out of the public system (which they still continue to pay for, through various means), and putting your kid in a better run private system, you're helping your kid. And by taking your kid out of the public system, you leave more resources for those who need it. I'm definitely an advocate of publicly funded schooling, with the option to private, should you feel your child needs/deserves it. I'm just wondering why you're berating the GGP.
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What about people like me, who are damn near invisible online? That's why I like having my last name be a 4 letter word which shows up in the dictionary as a noun, a verb, and is very similar to the last name of a few dozen famous people.
I'd argue it's the ability to do a handspring what makes you differently abled, not the other way 'round.
Keep a copy of the receipt? At the very least, that'll make sure that legit customers get their money's worth. And while I am well aware of the fact that a thief could buy one legit copy, steal ten, then have 10 other guys go back and re-cert each stolen DVD. But at the very least, it forces them to buy one legit copy. But since they already have that legit copy, they could probably just as easily make a duplicate disk as it is to steal it from a store. I was under the impression that a measure like this was to stop petty theft, is it not?
Actually, I meant the original to be the file which you were copying. In the case of VCRs and tape recordings off of TV, the original is the data you got from the cable / soundwaves.
Actually, the difference is facility and complete duplication. In taping music from the radio, and recording TV programs, you get a tape or VHS of reduced quality than the original. However, in downloading a song, you get a complete bit to bit transcription of the original song. Not only that, it's considerably easier, as you can do it remotely while someone else hosts it. All you have to do is download it. Compare that to the method of waiting for a good song to come on the radio, hitting the Play + Record button, and then hoping that you got a good selection. Or even doing it via VHS. However, that isn't to say I disagree with you. Until the music / movie industries are willing to accept the fact that people are going to download, and they try and charge people more for a broken product, people will continue to download. And yes, DRM is broken. You're giving the user the locked chest and the key. Even if you tell people they can only unlock it for reasons a, b, and c, people will still unlock it for d - z, simply because they can.
I suspect he means obtainable. Or completable. Or possible. Take your pick.
To be honest with you, I'm not a fan of any PDA. Straight or gay. And for the record, I'm a straight white male. With a girlfriend. I figure any sort of affection can be toned down in public such that no one is too offended.
Actually, the best theory I've heard on that was the prevalence of legal abortion in the 70s, leading to less situations where children are born (where they probably shouldn't have) and thus less of them turning to crime. Of course, that's just a theory.
He meant single as in individual. Like you can't buy an individual DRM-free track from Wal-Mart.
Where were you when I had mod points? This is actually an incredible idea. To add to it, charge people based on the mileage of their cars. Or keep a mini-computer inside it to keep track of how much energy it received over time. However, it'd take decades to get it working. And since people are so short-term based, I have very little hope in anything like this happening.
They do have plans to set extend the O-Train further north and south, as well as install an east-west route, but those plans got the boot when they realized that the current planned routes (going west from U of O to Bayview, then south to South Keys; just south of Orleans to Barrhaven) would barely be used. They still screw everyone who lives west of Kanata, east of Orleans, and south of Nepean.
Because of places like Ottawa. The OC Transpo system, while very nice, is still lacking quite a bit. They barely run it out to some of the suburbs, like Stittsville, and they don't even bother giving anywhere west of that anything other than a rural express route. I know this is anecdotal, but there are plenty of places where public transit isn't viable.
Sad part is, my uncle's in a similar issue. He met his wife via the internet, and got married in the Philippines, where she lives. However, he now has to wait almost half a year to clear all the various issues with immigration to Canada, and emigration from the Philippines. The thing that really steams him is that, in Canada, a huge amount of people cheat the system, by either falsely declaring refugee status, and then disappearing off the grid, or by lying through their teeth to get in.
The biggest problem is that racial minorities are just that. Minorities. As such, most games are geared toward the majority. Which, in North America, is your white middle-class suburbanite teen. And the only thing that a lot of them know about minorities is the stereotypes. It's so much easier to make money feeding on people's preconceived notions that worry about educating them.
The real solution? Dilute North America so far that we all become one race.
But that's just a waste of public resources. By having those cameras, you create a situation where either people will either a) be honest through paranoia, or b) speed and get the fines. Surely you can't say that it's a negative thing to have something that attempts to deter speeding and punishes those who, and I emphasize this, break the law. Yes they're making money on it. It's part of their job to find ways to make sure that they can afford to continue doing the things we really need the police to do, like enforce various other laws.
Eh. It's hard to get a decent paper. As an Ottawan, the two main papers I have access to are the Citizen (a fairly leftist paper) and the Sun (a more centrist paper). From my personal experience, the Sun tends to be more critical of the government on all levels. However, like any paper, they're fairly sensationalist. I tend to resort to the web and radio for news.
While I think you have a good point, part of our major adaptation has been the ability to adapt the environment to fit our purposes. And even if we continue to muck around with the environment, the conditions that follow that will allow us to adapt even more. It's a cycle. We fuck with the system, the system fucks with us, and eventually, we have a set of humans better equipped to deal with the circumstances.
Another alternative is that they accept that man-made emissions are causing this recent climate change, but they're showing other evidence that the popular theories have yet to account for. If your theory can't account for the evidence, then you have to change your theory to fit the new evidence, as well as the old.
I have two major problems with the IPCC at the moment. First off, (and someone please prove me wrong on this one [with links]), I have heard reports that the IPCC is tailoring the report to fit the summary. Secondly, their best theories still do not account for all the evidence, especially the evidence that would (to a person with no scientific background) prove them wrong.
That isn't to say that they aren't right, they just aren't right enough yet. They have to be able to fully explain the things that seem to counter their evidence.
Finally, I have every right to be sceptical of anyone and everyone who tries to tell me something. The onus is on you to fully convince me that you are correct.
What about people living in rural areas, or suburbanites?
I'm just gonna throw a curveball your way. What about people like me who hate mp3 players, but love mp3s? I went out and bought myself an mp3 player. Best of both worlds. I rip all my music to my computer, or download it (I listen to it when I'm on the computer at any given time), burn 700 megs of mp3s on a CD, and listen to that while on the go. I also have the incentive to go out and buy real CDs, since it's still compatible with my player, and as a bonus, works on my car's stereo system as well. Not only that, but I completely avoid the issue of DRM, unless I happen to buy a bad CD. But as of yet, I've had no major issues. My conclusion? I'm in a win-win situation for the things that I consider important. And no, knowing the name of the song is not important to me, nor is customizable playlists, or size issues. You'd have to do a lot of convincing to get me to switch to an mp3 player.
Public education is perfectly fine, I'm just saying that private is better in some ways. And of course, neither are perfect. I've seen just as many jackasses as geniuses come out of the Ontario (Canada) public education board, where we fund both public and Catholic schools. In fact, I graduated high school in 2006, and am currently attending university. I'm just wonder why people are berating this guy for making a legitimate point about getting people off the public tax dollar who can afford to.
I think you're completely misunderstanding the post. He's saying that by getting kids out of the public system (which they still continue to pay for, through various means), and putting your kid in a better run private system, you're helping your kid. And by taking your kid out of the public system, you leave more resources for those who need it. I'm definitely an advocate of publicly funded schooling, with the option to private, should you feel your child needs/deserves it. I'm just wondering why you're berating the GGP.