winsor

Drug use is not a felony. Drug possession may be, although usually it is a misdemeanor unless you are in possession with intent to distribute. That is entirely jurisdiction-dependent. In some places even THINKING hard about drugs is a felony.

Anyone who thinks they can predict the results of an election this far in advance is either an idiot or a fool. Or both. Wouldn't you agree? I don't think the American people will elect a liar/felon even though some people "don't care" about that. The incumbent admitted to felony drug use before the last election, and has made quite a few claims that are verifiably false over the years.

I think he should tap Oprah Winfrey. He might not win, but it would not be boring.

Look, you should be grateful. Regardless of one's intellectual limitations, an encounter with TSA leaves one feeling ready for Mensa. So, despite your claim to governmental stupidity, you have been officially one-upped. You think your government has its morons? We have TSA! BSBD, Winsor

"More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly." Woody Allen

If he really wants to stir things up, Hillary Clinton would be the perfect choice.

I'd love to read it but 800 pages of economics is a little beyond my attention span. Any chance there's an abridged version? And based on your experience and education in economics would you say all periods of economic contraction are bad? I could see a 'correction' every five to seven years as being beneficial as over heated areas come back in line, weaker companies go out of business and workers retrain for new careers with better prospects. I'm from an engineering/process controls background and when we would have a process upset the source was fixed and the process was allowed to correct itself and settle out. Jacking the controls around trying to get things back in line quicker was never successful and caused more problems than it fixed. But, I'm not an economist so I like hearing from others better versed in the subject. A system is a system, and a background in systems & controls does as good a job of preparing you for evaluating economics as one limited to economics. Most of the "economic theories" put forth so proudly by various schools of thought are reduced parameter models, linearized about a point of interest. The nonlinearities that arise when perturbations exceed their defined range, or when parameters that were not part of the model prevail, routinely leave economists scratching their heads. To the unwashed masses, who have to take off their shoes and socks to count over ten, Economists appear to be real whiz kids. Your average Economist, however, would be lost trying to wade through the kind of advanced math that is fundamental to any kind of hard science/engineering curriculum. BSBD, Winsor

Voter fraud is, historically speaking, a very effective tool in the elective process. Jack Kennedy, for example, lost to Tricky Dick Nixon in 1960, but "rabbit out of the hat" victories in Texas (courtesy of LBJ) and Illinois (courtesy of R.J. Daley) changed the outcome in his favor. The fact that someone far enough down the food chain that they are unable to provide identification is pretty much guaranteed to vote Democrat may or may not be a real factor. I also doubt that illegal aliens are likely to vote Republican as well, but, again, I am not sure how great are these numbers. If the rolls of eligible voters are periodically reviewed to remove people who are at least temporarily dead, as well as those who are registered in at least one too many jurisdictions, I can't see the problem with that in and of itself. If any particular scheme is implemented that serves to disenfranchise one group of citizens or another, that is immoral, unethical, unconstitutional or something. In any event, it is a bad thing. My limited experience is that it is not simply the rules that matter, it is who is enforcing them. Stalin's observation comes to mind,whereby who votes is of less importance than is who counts the votes. The most brilliant system in the hands of corrupt people without adult supervision is no better than a fundamentally corrupt system. It is unfortunate that it takes honor for an honor system to work. BSBD, Winsor

Posting factual information that conflicts with the belief systems of the dumb fucks that are Right Wing Conservatives is a waste of time. There is no amount of factual information that will cause any change in their belief structure. This mental illness is much like the so called "christians" who quote the bible in support of their beliefs. They pick and choose little bits from here and there to support their previously established beliefs, while ignoring the the bits that are 100% the opposite of what their beliefs are. When the obvious stuff is pointed out, like the rules for handling slaves, and the sale of female children, they always say "We don't believe in or use those parts of the bible any more". Funny how that works, isn't it. It totally exposes the lies upon which the belief system is built. Okay, so you are a wellspring of vitriol. Do you actually have any suggestions? BTW, "datum" is the singular of "data." Using the word "datas" is indicative of semi-literacy.

Not the most definitive source, but a fun counter nevertheless.

I am nothing short of amazed when I see a bumper sticker touting either candidate. Who could support either candidate enough to damage the paint job on a Yugo? This is truly a "hold your nose and vote" election.

Whats Jews got to do with this, he didn't mention Jews? I think that is an intermediate step before Godwin'ing a thread. Nah, we're talking Pharoah here. FWIW, for all the bitching at Seder, Jews were not "enslaved" in the sense that Negroes were in the American Colonies. Having drifted into Egypt because that was where the food was, the Children of Israel recognized a good thing when they saw it, and stuck around. Needing personnel for Public Works Projects (not pyramids in particular for the Hebrews), the Egyptians instituted a sort of draft, where the Hebrew community provided the bulk of its able bodied work force for manual and skilled labor. Like those in the Armed Forces, the role of the personnel so detailed was somewhere between voluntary and enslaved. They were obligated to work, but they were paid and had Union rules (Shabbat - a day off a week - was granted by the Egyptians, who considered it a sign that Hebrews were lazy). There was no "personal ownership" involved, as one saw with the slave auctions in the Deep South of the U.S., and Hebrews had the right of property ownership and the right to arms. Thus, I would take the "let my people go" type of slavery of the Jews in Egypt over the "Roots" type slavery of Negroes in the U.S. any day. Then again, you could not give me enough money to trade places with Chris Rock. To have to be this generation's contribution to Stepin Fetchit's legacy would be too much to bear. BSBD, Winsor

I'm white. Ain't got no soul. Rhythm neither. Can you jump? Oddly enough, yes.

I am upset that he has chosen to emigrate to Zimbabwe, thus depriving us of his awesome talent. Maybe if we had not oppressed him so severely, he would have been willing to stay. Oh, the White Guilt! How can we live with the shame? It is all our fault! Etc.

The concept of spirit and soul is debated without conclusion. I'm white. Ain't got no soul. Rhythm neither.

I'm reminded of the interchange between a comic and the audience: "Anyone here Polish?" "I am." "Do you like Polish jokes?" "Sure." "Do you understand them?"

As I understand it, it was originally termed "That Goddamned Particle" due to its elusive nature. It was shortened to "The God Particle" for the book's title.

He just let that leak to distract attention from his being born in Canada.

Ok why? A terrorists can damage products/buildings and not hurt a single person and still cause you to loose trust. So why can't these men be quantified as terrorists? They do as much damage to the fabric of society. V. I. Lenin said something to the effect that, the purpose of terrorism is to terrorize. The purpose of the bankers was to turn a buck, period. If everyone benefited marvelously from thair actions, that would be fine with them. If they made tons of money and nobody noticed one way or another, that's cool too. If they got staggering bonuses and lots of people wound up screwed, the important point is that they should not be among those who got screwed. The people who did get screwed were obviously not as smart as them, and amounted to little more than collateral damage. To call everything terrorism is intellectually lazy at best. BSBD, Winsor

Reality is overrated. Many people relapse (think Greatful Dead ca. 1991) when they come to the realization that the reality they sought to escape chemically does, in fact, blow. "Faith" is touted as a mechanism by which one can belay the destructive pattern of reality-avoidance; this may take the form of a system of belief (take your pick), but it may manifest itself as simply faith that one can endure nasty realities without falling victim to them. Ron adheres the the belief-based form of faith, I take the skeptic's route. Whatever works. The bottom line is that, whatever are our differences, neither of us drink or do drugs, we are both committed to the quality of life of those around us, and we are at peace with our fate. What is often lost is that I do not take exception to his choices, nor do I pity or feel sad for him. I only rise to the bait when someone says "this is true" without qualification. I am totally cool with someone saying "I believe this and it makes me happy." I do not think that Ron's beliefs are borne out in reality, but I also do not think that what Ron or I believe or don't believe has any impact whatsoever on what is or is not true. My issue is semantic (semantics being the study of meaning), and I have no expectation that anyone will come around to my way of thinking. I noticed long ago that what is glaringly obvious to me is largely incomprehensible to most people; this is, of course, why I am valuable in my chosen profession. Anyhow, feel free to critique the message but not the messanger. Ron is a mensch. BSBD, Winsor

The thing that amazes me about Scientology - as well as Mormon - is how blindingly transparent the whole thing is. There is no attempt at Byzantine obfuscation; it is pure, unadulterated patent nonsense. Then again, maybe that's the appeal.

So what, can't you get it? The Truth of God has survived all of the translations, re-translation, copying, re-copying, editing, re-editing, cultures and languages, erroneous scientific backgrounds. What we have works for those who can hear Gods call. It is a spiritual book with powerful spiritual insights. My life is proof of that. Call it want you will, in the end who gives a shit? It works as a means for communicating with God and at the end of the day that is one hell of a lot more important to me than some rhetorical chirping. Oh yeah and I forgot to add, Have a good day :) ... I get it, I get it! In your world of make-believe, anything you deem the work of your invisible friend is the 'Truth,' regardless of how contradictory or nonsensical it is, and despite all evidence to the contrary. This is the best you have? I'm underwhelmed. BSBD, Winsor

IQ = 70 is 2 standard devs. from the mean. In the old days, "moron" was applied to people with an IQ of 51-70 Hmmm, I understand that. Do you think it is possible for a "moron" to obtain a graduate degree from an accredited state university? Al Gore is proof that an imbicile can graduate from Harvard, and G. W. Bush proves they'll give an M.B.A. to an idiot. Likewise, I have been stunned by the dunderheads that pulled off Ph.D.s from supposedly reputable institutions. Needless to say, I.Q. distributions vary wildly by discipline - there is a HUGE difference between people getting degrees to teach math and people becoming degreed Mathematicians, for example. Thus, an impressive sheepskin does not rule out a profound lack of intellectual acuity - though it does make it a lot less likely. BSBD, Winsor

I posted my comment because I just felt like being an ass... Mission accomplished! However, I am unsure what that buys you.

As far as your being like me, that is by no means my goal - and is not necessarily possible (for reasons other than the obvious). Your claim that I have nothing for which to live only holds water if one presumes your values to be universal. This does not appear to be the case. If you want to believe things, fine. If you are willing to live and let live, that's great as well. If, rather than saying "I believe XYZ" you choose to claim "XYZ is the Truth (tm)," do not take it personally if said claims are subjected to a sanity check.