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[2005-04-21 12:59:29] - I'm just thinking, that could be a really good strategy for circumventing company rules that you disagree with. -Paul
[2005-04-21 12:58:53] - Without trying to be mocking of what could be a serious religion, I wonder how easy it is to start up a new religion like that? Can I make a Church of Laziness? -Paul
[2005-04-21 12:57:59] - http://www.thetimesonline.com/articles/2005/04/20/updates/odds_and_ends/139e45b7391b527286256fe900543acf.txt A woman who was fired by Costco in 2001 for refusing to remove her eyebrow ring has accused the company of religious discrimination, saying she is a member of the Church of Body Modification. -Paul
[2005-04-21 11:31:51] - lisa: congrats.... out of curiosity, who is keane?
- aba[2005-04-21 11:06:23] - a: can i be gradient like mig, but in blue? 0.) also i hope you and lori feel better soon. *hugs to both of you* -amy
[2005-04-21 11:04:55] - Amy: Sorry, I didn't know sharing a color was parade-worthy. -Paul
[2005-04-21 10:56:36] - Lisa: No way!!! You called in and won one of those radio contests? That's crazy! - aaron
[2005-04-21 10:53:06] - paul: fine rain on my (our) parade .( -amy
[2005-04-21 09:57:43] - Amy: People who don't have a specific color assigned to them all share the same non-descript color. If you want something different, you have to tell Adrian. -Paul
[2005-04-21 09:57:10] - Lisa: Congrats! -Paul
[2005-04-21 09:56:55] - a+Lori: Sorry to hear, hope you are both feeling better soon. -Paul
[2005-04-21 09:54:06] - Lisa: hey we are the same color ^_^ -amy
[2005-04-21 09:53:51] - Lisa: that's awesome! How did you win them?? -amy
[2005-04-21 09:52:55] - I won....not won't - Lisa
[2005-04-21 09:52:41] - Does anyone listen to Z104 in the morning? I wont tickets to the Keane concert!!!!! - Lisa
[2005-04-21 09:17:38] - DDR SFM 5.45. AAV? -AMY
[2005-04-21 08:50:11] - That so deep video looks very difficult. You can tell he has trouble combining the timing of the pins with the timing of the steps. - aaron
[2005-04-21 08:47:38] - lori: Sorry to hear - hope you get better soon. - aaron
[2005-04-21 07:32:50] - ddr people: FYI, both adrian and I are sick, so I don't think we can come today. Sorry! - Lori
[2005-04-21 01:42:40] - dave: I'm not talking about the difference between -R and -RW, I'm talking about the difference between -ROM and (-R and -RW). The HD-DVD/Bluray debate is over the -ROM format, which would be the format that get people to adopt the technology in the first place. DVD-R[W] and DVD+R[W] only exist because DVD-ROM was only one standard. - pierce
[2005-04-20 23:10:09] - http://www.m90.org/gallery/video/Qhrome-SoDeep0-3085.wmv
[2005-04-20 18:16:20] - Pierce: 0_o current + and - DVD formats come in both R and RW. Like there is -R and +R and also -RW and +RW -dave
[2005-04-20 17:54:39] - Pierce: Good point. -Paul
[2005-04-20 17:31:52] - Paul: man-date refers to two people... a bunch of people going to a movie is not a man-date, and so the seat-between rule goes out the door. - pierce
[2005-04-20 17:25:09] - Oh, the mention of Stratego was cool too.
-Paul[2005-04-20 17:23:39] - "When attending a movie together ... guys prefer to put a nice big seat between each other." I didn't get the big deal with most of the article but this line really stuck out to me. I'm not the only one! -Paul
[2005-04-20 17:22:26] - http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/lifestyle/219642_mandates.html An article about man-dates. -Paul
[2005-04-20 17:17:12] - Also: the current DVD format war has to do with writeable and rewriteable formats, the HD-DVD/Bluray debate is about the read-only type, which is an important distinction because it's what films will be released in. - pierce
[2005-04-20 17:11:59] - a: at least the current + and - formats -dave
[2005-04-20 17:08:44] - a: there is no more war over DVD format, because they decided that they could both coexist -dave
[2005-04-20 16:50:38] - http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/04/20/robot.jockeys.ap/index.html qatar to replace camel riders with robot jockeys - aaron
[2005-04-20 16:03:31] - Vinnie: Same here. I actually thought it sounded kinda cute. Somebody who just goes out every night and dates some random guy (or girl). -Paul
[2005-04-20 15:58:17] - paul: someone who dates at random! yeah, before clicking on the link I was wondering what the hell it was about - vinnie
[2005-04-20 14:54:16] - Mig: I thought the term "serial dater" made it sound humorous. Oh no! Somebody who dates a lot! -Paul
[2005-04-20 14:48:01] - although the term "serial dater" makes what he did seem a lot more ominous then it actually was. - mig
[2005-04-20 14:35:32] - Mig: He probably just figured he wouldn't get caught and it was an easy way to get free food that was normally expensive. I'm a bit surprised he wouldn't stick around to see where things went with the woman though.
-paul[2005-04-20 14:28:38] - paul: wow that guy must have been really hungry to have to resort to such measures to get a free meal. - mig
[2005-04-20 14:10:00] - http://www.reason.com/sullum/041505.shtml NOW is not pro-choice on breast implants. -Paul
[2005-04-20 14:05:53] - http://www.washtimes.com/national/20050418-123704-9958r.htm Texas anxious over sect lifestyle -Paul
[2005-04-20 14:04:24] - http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1361131.html?menu= Serial dater caught -Paul
[2005-04-20 13:56:52] - http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/050420 The Sports Guy talks about Fever Pitch. Most of you probably don't care, although I like his discussion about how women get even crazier when it comes to chick flicks. -Paul
[2005-04-20 13:44:11] - http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2041465 Maybe the media will lay off Vijay a little bit now. -Paul
[2005-04-20 10:21:42] - man, it's really sad since the format war over dvd hasn't ended. at least with cds we had like a 5 year gap between the end of the cd war and the beginning of the dvd war. ~a
[2005-04-20 10:13:10] - http://www.news24.com/News24/Backpage/BetweenTheSheets/0,5583,2-1343-1346_1692438,00.html " A German inventor claims to have created the world's most sophisticated robot sex doll." I wonder if his name is Warren... -Paul
[2005-04-20 09:58:52] - http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20050419-4824.html Format war over DVD successor looks more likely -Paul
[2005-04-20 08:18:16] - In an episode of the show Futurama called "The Farnsworth Paradox", an alternate universe where everyone is a hippie is numbered as Universe 420.
~a[2005-04-20 08:14:25] - aaron: which doesn't really matter
~a[2005-04-20 08:10:39] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/420_%28drug_culture%29 420 is not a police code for a drug bust. (urban legend.) - aaron
[2005-04-20 07:52:41] - happy april 20th, everybody. ~a
[2005-04-20 00:37:45] -
[2005-04-19 23:19:42] - whoever set the title: i heart you. ~a
[2005-04-19 14:04:01] - awww . . . they fixed the vandalism already . . . here's my screenshot: "pope" ~a
[2005-04-19 14:00:07] - yay for vandalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Benedict_XVI ~a[2005-04-19 13:47:55] - New pope chosen! He's German. http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=684038 -mel
[2005-04-19 13:23:06] - especially if the cars that got sent on fire just happen to be local to a math/science type of school -mel
[2005-04-19 13:22:22] - but its easier to track down a weird person who sprays math equations than a weird person who sets cars on fire -mel
[2005-04-19 13:21:58] - yes -mel
[2005-04-19 13:21:54] - haha
[2005-04-19 13:10:44] - how many average people would set a car on fire? ~a
[2005-04-19 13:09:09] - my favorite thing that he spray-painted was Euler's Theroem. But it was also kinda stupid. How many average people would spray paint a math equation on a car before they set it on fire? -mel
[2005-04-19 13:06:44] - a+mig: yes thats pretty much what they did. well most of the times he used the library was afterhours so he swiped his ID card to get in. They correlated the ID card swipes with the timestamps of the e-mails. -mel
[2005-04-19 13:01:35] - even if they didn't have cameras, as long as they have the timestamp of the email they can ask whoever was working there who used computer x at time y. - mig
[2005-04-19 12:47:49] - aaron: they probably have cameras in the library. and caltech is a very small school. ~a
[2005-04-19 12:47:01] - fighting terrorism with terrorism . . . that doesn't sound very logical. oh wait ~a
[2005-04-19 12:46:32] - Presuming he didn't have to log into his e-mail account or something - that would be a good way to brag about something like that - aaron
[2005-04-19 12:46:02] - mel: That makes some sense if you think about it - it's anonymous email access - aaron
[2005-04-19 12:18:36] - He got caught because he sent e-mails to the LA Times bragging about the arsons from the Caltech library -mel
[2005-04-19 12:17:44] - The defense claimed that he has a high level of autism that made him good at physics but succeptible to being manipulated (two other Caltech students were involved) -mel
[2005-04-19 12:16:41] - he was also ordered to pay 3.5 million dollars in restitution. Damn! Thats a lot of money. He spray-painted stuff like "SUVs=terrorism" on the cars he set on fire. -mel
[2005-04-19 12:14:24] - http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/Stories/0,1413,206~22097~2823697,00.html Billy Cottrell (Caltech grad student) sentenced to 8 years for a string of SUV arsons.... -mel
[2005-04-19 11:18:32] - http://news.com.com/2010-1071_3-5660795.html privacy officer to make sure homeland security doesn't violate privacy can't legally do her job. - mig
[2005-04-19 10:43:07] - http://rawstory.com/exclusives/kanson/cordova_ordered_back_anthrax_401.htm army guy becomes basically disabled after taking "safe" anthrax vaccine, but that doesn't stop the army from calling him to report for active duty. - mig
[2005-04-19 10:37:37] - pierce: i use ssh-port-forwarding for that. i know it's not an actual vpn, but it's how i privatize all of my network traffic from employers. ~a
[2005-04-19 10:22:30] - mig: Could be, I don't know. I guess we'll have to see. -Paul
[2005-04-19 10:06:59] - I heard Michaels was going to be out, and Madden might move to NBC. - mig
[2005-04-19 10:00:23] - mig: There is talk of Madden and Michaels moving over since ABC won't have any football anymore and ESPN and ABC are owned by the same company. -Paul
[2005-04-19 08:41:06] - paul: i hope to god this doesn't mean berman is going to be calling football games again. - mig
[2005-04-19 08:35:37] - http://money.cnn.com/2005/04/19/news/fortune500/usair_cheap_flights/index.htm?cnn=yes US air mistakenly sells over 1,000 round trip tickets for $1.86 - aaron
[2005-04-19 03:03:29] - Any of you know of any free (pref. open source but doesn't have to be) VPN software for windows? I'd like to set it up so that I have a private network connection (routed through my computer at home) even when I'm on a public wireless network, so it would need to be both client- and server-side. - pierce
[2005-04-18 23:32:01] - i'd go! - aaron
[2005-04-18 21:11:27] - directions to the closest in the groove mix (15 minutes past kings dominion) info about the nearest in the groove mix ~a
[2005-04-18 18:01:37] - Aaron: According to what I've read, they'll probably end up closing the EB if it's too close to an already established Gamestop. -Paul
[2005-04-18 17:51:29] - paul: springfield mall is going to be weird... will they have two gamestops? ? ? - aaron
[2005-04-18 17:38:38] - einstein died 50 years ago today? why didn't anybody (like /.) point that out? i randomly typed in "calendar" on a linux box and it printed out that he died in 1955 on april 18th. ~a
[2005-04-18 17:27:49] - http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-nflmondaynight&prov=ap&type=lgns Monday Night Football moving to ESPN? -Paul
[2005-04-18 17:16:00] - http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20050418-4818.html Gamestop buys EB -Paul
[2005-04-18 14:44:37] - http://entertainment.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=188309>1=6428 Arrested Development might be cancelled. -Paul
[2005-04-18 14:30:39] - anon: If you type "/title" with no args, it removes the title.
[2005-04-18 14:14:44] - where'd the title go?
[2005-04-18 11:22:25] - Dave: That's pretty much what I was getting at. Mostly that dirty and evil deeds look a lot less dirty and evil when it's your own country that is doing them. -Paul
[2005-04-18 11:03:52] - Paul: yeah, that's probably true. The American masses can't understand very much, much less disregard the emotional reaction from hearing something compared to the Nazis -dave
[2005-04-18 10:55:37] - Dave: Yeah, fascism is a very weird ideology that I'm not entirely sure I understand. I especially don't understand how they are considered far right since it seems like they have so much in common with socialists. -Paul
[2005-04-18 10:54:41] - Dave: Agreed. My only point is that no matter how strong and logical a case you think you might have to say that America is acting like the Nazis did, you're going to have a real hard time selling it to the average american. -Paul
[2005-04-18 10:53:03] - Paul: seems like that part of the definition in and of itself would rule out any Supreme Court Justice from being fascist -dave
[2005-04-18 10:52:23] - that from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fascist -dave
[2005-04-18 10:52:11] - Paul: I didn't know fascism "uses violence and modern techniques of propaganda and censorship to forcibly suppress political opposition " -dave
[2005-04-18 10:49:44] - Paul: I guess, like it appears you guys discussed, it's probably better to say you think a Supreme Court Justice has way too much power, encroaching on an authoritarian level, vs saying their fascist or a Nazi, or whatever -dave
[2005-04-18 10:41:51] - Dave: Something on the level of what Pierce was talking about. I think it's hard to convince the average American that a Supreme Court Justice is anywhere near the level of a Nazi (or fascist). -Paul
[2005-04-18 10:23:12] - Paul: yeah, I guess it comes down to what you think is "dramatic" -dave
[2005-04-18 10:20:03] - that America might do some evil stuff that is comparable to Nazi Germany in some way. -Paul
[2005-04-18 10:19:37] - Dave: Yeah, I didn't express myself too well. Mostly I was just commenting that it's hard to convince most normal people of anything dramatically bad about America. Sure, you can find radical liberals or conservatives who spout doom and gloom about the other side but it's still hard to convince the average American... -Paul
[2005-04-18 10:16:57] - http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20050415-4814.html Amazon thinking of entering the online DVD rental arena? -Paul
[2005-04-18 08:37:13] - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62164-2005Apr18.html Adobe acquiring Macromedia -dave
[2005-04-18 08:04:45] - Paul: But if you're talking about the "larger" picture of whether most Americans think that the republicish form of govt we have is ok, then you might be right -dave
[2005-04-18 08:03:44] - Paul: Like conservatives think a lot of the social programs stink. Liberals think we should have more social programs. Conservatives think we tax junk too much, liberals think we should tax more (these are all gross generalizations) -dave
[2005-04-18 08:02:48] - Paul: Like if you think about how many things both conservatives and liberals think are wrong with the current system, then it doesn't end up being so "shining" -dave
[2005-04-18 08:01:58] - Paul: I don't know if I agree with you about most people thinking the US is the shining beacon of whatever. I mean, in one context, it's true that most people would probably say it's really good etc, but that's usually in contrast with other nations. -dave
[2005-04-17 19:14:29] - And for the record i can't reproduce the error at home - aaron
[2005-04-17 19:14:16] - paul: i was typing "PARTIAL" in all capital letters a lot. - aaron
[2005-04-15 17:04:00] - Aaron: Why are you trying to do these weird keyboard combinations? -Paul
[2005-04-15 16:56:53] - Happy Birthday Pierce! -mel
[2005-04-15 16:54:20] - It's funny because like Shift-COW and Shift-AER or anything else works, just not Shift-ART - aaron
[2005-04-15 16:53:55] - Are the 3-key limits on keyboards completely arbitrary or what? I keep typing Shift-ART when programming, and the "T" never registers. I'll have to try it on my keyboard at home - aaron
[2005-04-15 15:28:51] - pierce: in the context of that time frame, i think i agree somewhat with that then. - mig
[2005-04-15 15:27:00] - Pierce: Well, we can say "mome" or "sost" and agree to meet in the middle. -Paul
[2005-04-15 15:26:30] - okay, gotta go. The lines are the post office are going to be pretendous. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:26:02] - Paul: I'm just saying if it were "some" then I'd have no argument. I think (hope?) "most" is stretching things. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:24:59] - just for the record though, I was thinking more in the context of the last 45-50 years (excluding McCarthyism, which I know shouldn't really be excluded). - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:24:12] - Pierce: I know you're probably gone, but did you want me to replace "most" with "some"? I don't know if I would agree with that. It's been my experience that most people aren't willing to see what (IMHO) is right in front of them. But of course, that's entirely my opinion.
-Paul[2005-04-15 15:22:46] - Mig: Agreed, people actually have it extremely easy now compared to how people were treated in certain earlier wars (I'm thinking the Civil War in particular). -Paul
[2005-04-15 15:22:37] - Okay, gotta go mail the 1040. Talk to you all later, at whatever this "pierce's thing" thing is. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:22:08] - mig: you make an excellent point. I guess it was my turn to be myopic. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:21:02] - Paul: put "some" before "conservatives" and "liberals" and you'll have no argument from me. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:20:57] - I guess the difference being that half of the liberals would consider my doomsday predictions to be utopian.
-Paul[2005-04-15 15:20:26] - deciding dissent is treasonous is nothing new, unless you're talking in the context of the last 150 years: civil war, world war I, mccarthyism - mig
[2005-04-15 15:19:58] - Partly due, I think, to lessons learned about how poorly we treated soldiers returning from Vietnam, and largely due to the fact that 9/11 was much closer to home than we'd previously experienced. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:19:33] - Pierce: I guess I was being too general. What I said before applies mostly to conservatives, but I think it's equally impossible to convince most liberals about certain things about America as well. -Paul
[2005-04-15 15:17:39] - *** mig jumps.
[2005-04-15 15:17:18] - Paul: I think that view of American society is a bit myopic. Look at the unpopularity of the Vietnam War at the time... it's just a relatively recent, and hopefully temporary phenomenon that we've decided dissent is treasonous. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:16:28] - *** amy is *always* doing something cool!
[2005-04-15 15:15:11] - Hmmm, only replace the second "me" with your name. Not the first, though. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:14:53] - Pierce: Well, I'll go ahead and say it's virtually impossible to convince most Americans that their country is anything less than the shining beacon of freedom, goodness and democracy in the world, let alone that we could ever possibly do anything as horrible as kill lots of people. -Paul
[2005-04-15 15:14:47] - type "/me does something cool. - me" - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:13:25] - pierce: how did you do that? .D
[2005-04-15 15:13:18] - /me didn't realize there was a /me command!
[2005-04-15 15:11:49] - Paul: umm, I left the example in my other pants. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:11:33] - *** pierce checks pockets...
[2005-04-15 15:09:47] - Pierce: Maybe if you have me a specific example of how Scalia is going to cause the death of millions?
-Paul[2005-04-15 15:07:11] - Pierce: True. I guess such moments don't come up much for me. Usually I'm arguing that the government itself is a problem, not just the fascist aspects of it.
-Paul[2005-04-15 15:07:04] - mig: heh, you know I never thought about that line from office space as a commentary on hyperbolic arguments. I just thought it was funny because his attempt at shock failed. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:05:59] - Because keep in mind, comparing something to fascism, or socialism, or democracy is really using anecdotal evidence and it's trivial to say that things won't happen the same way in other similar circumstances. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:05:34] - i have no problem with hitler/nazi analogies as long as they make sense in the context of the argument and not meant as just purely emotional jabs (like "the nazis had pieces of flare they made jews wear"). - mig
[2005-04-15 15:04:30] - Paul: well said, and I wish most arguments had such clear-cut moments. But more often, the disagreement is whether or not something constitutes fascism, or whether it constitutes a flavor of fascism similar enough to Nazism that we can draw conclusions. - pierce
[2005-04-15 15:04:01] - I do think that Hitler is very overused in debates, but I think there is also plenty of legitimate material there to be used. We shouldn't just be prevented from using him (and Nazis) as examples just because some people overuse it. -Paul
[2005-04-15 15:02:22] - Pierce: Maybe, but if somebody is stupid enough to claim that fascism could never lead to mass murder (or something like that), then I have no problem bringing up Hitler. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:58:44] - Amy: Pierce's thing? - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:58:36] - Paul: okay, fair enough. But even using comparisons to Nazi history on such a local scope in your argument will result in people invoking Godwin's law. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:58:32] - Pierce: Agreed. And I don't know exactly what kind of examples I could give to connect the dots using historical examples but if the person I am talking too says it's too big of a leap, then I would present the historical examples of when it happened (ie, fascists in Germany etc). -paul
[2005-04-15 14:57:25] - Vinnie: That's the plan. We might even have enough for 3 on 3 if everybody shows up. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:57:19] - Let's take the example you just gave. If the chain of events leading from "Scalia is a strict constitutionalist" to "Athiests will be burned at the stake" is more than three or four steps long, people will say it's too unlikely, even if that exact chain (or one very similar) had occurred in the past. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:56:51] - Pierce: Then THAT is when I bring in my comparisons. "Internment camps don't lead to mass murder" "Well, they did in Nazi Germany during WW2" etc. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:56:03] - ultimate_people: sorry about this, but i think we should cancel bc so far we only have 4 people and with pierce's thing it is probably bad timing. i really think next week would be better. -amy
[2005-04-15 14:55:57] - paul: bball is still happening today? - vinnie
[2005-04-15 14:55:57] - Pierce: Ok, I guess I understand the difference, although I still think fascism has enough of that baggage for your uses. How about the Taliban, or maybe Islamic fundamentalism? China? It depends on what specific freedoms you are talking about and who you are talking to, probably. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:55:00] - Paul: but if you can't compare this situation to something in the past, then people will claim you're making too many logical leaps. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:53:50] - Example: "I think Scalia is bad because he supports tyranny and it could lead to athiests being burned at the stake in this country" and then proceed to explain how. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:53:47] - Paul: you misunderstand. The reason I don't want to use "fascist" is because people don't know (or feel) what it means. "What it means" not necessarily referring to mass murder, but rather all of the potential abuses of tyranny (such as the loss of freedom). - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:52:56] - This might sound strange coming from me, but making comparisons might not be the best form of argument. You want to say Scalia is going to lead to something bad happening? Just come out and say it rather than comparing him to Hitler or whoever. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:51:42] - Pierce: Compare him to the Taliban then? I'm still a bit confused, you don't want to use "fascist" because it doesn't carry mass-murdering undertones but you don't want to use Hitler because it does? -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:51:22] - Paul: I agree with your theory. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:50:29] - I have a theory that using non-typical terms like "the state" (in referring to the government) and "authoritarian" and the like hurts libertarians more than it helps. When you use terms that people aren't familiar with, it makes you seem like more of a wacko. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:49:31] - Paul: no, that's not the point I (or Hypothetical Joe making this argument) am trying to make. By saying, for example, that Scalia is like Hitler, one would be saying that Scalia's policies lead to fascism/authoritarianism/totalitarianism, which we should reasonably assume will lead to tyranny and the abuses of tyranny. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:49:02] - Mig: Authoritarian is too broad for my liking, and it's not a word that anybody else (other than libertarians) seem to use, which I think dilutes arguments sometimes. -paul
[2005-04-15 14:47:09] - mig: problem is, when you're talking to someone who isn't well schooled in the history of totalitarianism in its various forms, "authoritarian" will probably mean even less to them than "fascist". - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:46:53] - Pierce: I don't know if I can help you, since I would think calling somebody a tyrant would be enough. I guess I don't understand why you just can't go ahead and bring in Hitler to the argument. Your point is that the person you are talking about is going to kill lots of people, right? A comparison to Hitler is probably what you want then. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:45:33] - i prefer the term "authoritarian" to describe it rather than using facism. - mig
[2005-04-15 14:44:36] - Everybody always thinks of fascism as a radical rightist movement, but if you look at what it stood for in Italy and Germany (assuming they were fascist states), then they actually appeared quite leftist in many ways. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:44:19] - Paul: the implication of what I would consider a valid reference to Hitler is that tyranny (and the things it leads to, like genocide) is the logical consequence of fascism. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:43:16] - I actually don't like to use the term "fascist" myself because it seems like such an ill-defined term. Everybody pretty much knows what socialists and communists stand for, but there is disagreement over exactly what fascism is. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:42:01] - Pierce: I guess you're right, but really the only difference between fascism and Hitler/Nazis IS that they killed lots of people so... -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:41:16] - I would say if you think calling somebody a "fascist" is too weak, then you're relying too much on provoking an emotional reaction. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:41:14] - It's a word that people recognize is bad but don't really know why, IMO. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:40:56] - Paul: I really think it doesn't. I'd say most people don't even know what it means, and might not even be able to identify it with the third reich. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:39:08] - Pierce: The term fascist doesn't have enough negative connotation?
-Paul[2005-04-15 14:38:12] - Kind of playing devil's advocate, by the way. 99.9% of the time I think references to Nazism are the last resort of someone without a better argument. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:37:32] - Paul: but the argument is pretty weak if you're just saying they're fascist, because most people won't carry that to its logical conclusion. Comparisons to Hitler remind people of why fascism is bad. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:35:26] - Pierce: Say they show fascist tendencies? I'm not entirely sure when an opportunity would arise when anything could be gained from making such a comparison anyway. -paul
[2005-04-15 14:34:01] - So when mentioning Nazism or Hitler gets your argument immediately dismissed as hyperbole, how do you compare people ideologically to fascism without implying that they've killed millions of people? - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:31:55] - Amy: Probably because his television persona shows only slight more intelligence depth than Vanna White's?
-Paul[2005-04-15 14:29:24] - ...and even then it would be hard to distribute the money evenly so that, say, counties that support Bush didn't get disproportionately more money than counties that support Nader. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:29:09] - paul: agreed. i'm surprised; he seems pretty articulate in text. actually i don't know why that should surprise me but it does .) -amy
[2005-04-15 14:28:52] - aaron: yeah, I'll agree with that but it kind of seems like it's the principle of the thing. Parties in power shouldn't get an edge just because they're in power... they already have the edge. I don't think there's a fair way to distribute the election fund money, unless it's only used for election infrastructure... - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:28:31] - Aaron: I'm not so sure I agree, but I can see your point. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:28:15] - aaron: agreed; this page totally reminds me of saved by the bell. (early 90's is an approximation for 80's) -amy
[2005-04-15 14:27:16] - Pieron: I agree, I guess I didn't mean that I agreed that all liberals are bad people to talk to, but just that I knew exactly how he feels about just not wanting to talk to people who believes that anybody who thinks differently from them is either stupid or evil or both. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:25:42] - paul: I didn't say it shouldn't be all of them, i just said that two is better than one - aaron
[2005-04-15 14:25:40] - Pierce: A lot of people in the message board for that article (on fark) said the same thing. The others pretty much just called him names.
-Paul[2005-04-15 14:25:24] - paul: And i would say that both sides do their fair share of "oh you're wrong because your side is so immoral" kind of arguments. It's not fair to single liberals out on that one imho - aaron
[2005-04-15 14:24:50] - Amy: I wouldn't have ever even thought about going to that website. Not only is Pat Sajak one of the most non-out-standing (in a good way) game show hosts I can think of, I also would've never thought he would have a blog. -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:24:35] - For every redstater who thinks most liberals agree with Ward Churchill, there's a bluestater who thinks most conservatives agree with Jerry Falwell. It's only when we stop arguing with the icon and start discussions with the person that things actually get accomplished. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:23:27] - Aaron: So why just the top two? Why not all of them? -Paul
[2005-04-15 14:23:17] - Paul: I think he falls into the same trap that many reasonable conservatives (in my experience) do... using the extreme examples as representative of the whole. Hell, what am I saying, conservatives don't have a monopoly on that. - pierce
[2005-04-15 14:20:27] - WOW his blog is so totally eighties! Magenta shapes, handwriting-looking fonts, it's all so awesome to the max - aaron
[2005-04-15 14:19:25] - pierce: because splitting political donations between two parties instead of one encourages competition, which is what democracy should be about - aaron
[2005-04-15 14:18:38] - paul: LOL patsajak.com, it seems like one of those URLs that NO ONE would ever want to go to, like skittles.com or something. but this looks interesting .) -amy
[2005-04-15 14:09:24] - http://www.patsajak.com/news2.php?view=says&id=45?FARK Pat Sajak has a blog? I have no idea what the man's political beliefs are, but I liked this entry. I felt like I could especially relate to the last paragraph. -Paul
[2005-04-15 13:33:59] - pierce: it isn't. it would just be perceived as less stinky. - mig
[2005-04-15 13:31:28] - aaron: just out of curiosity, why would it being split between the two leading candidates be significantly less stinky than it being given to the incumbent candidate? - pierce
[2005-04-15 13:23:35] - is it really like, the presidential reelection campaign? because that would be stinky and surprising - aaron
[2005-04-15 13:23:12] - pierce: I assumed it was split between the democratic candidate and the republican candidate - i figured it went into a common pool which was split between the two leading presidential candidates for advertising and stuff - aaron
[2005-04-15 13:03:59] - amy: i can make 3, i probably will have to leave around 4:30 probably. - mig
[2005-04-15 13:03:22] - pierce: you are most definitely not alone in pink elephant syndrome .) in fact i am having a bout of it trying to figure out my work right now... -amy
[2005-04-15 13:02:56] - Pierce: I have the same problem with my taxes. I have so little idea of what I'm doing. At least you seem to know something about investing (what with S corporations and whatnot). -Paul
[2005-04-15 13:02:06] - Pierce: I thought it just goes to pay the matching funds or something. Never really thought about it. -Paul
[2005-04-15 13:01:58] - mig: i don't really have any idea where that is ^_^; anyway you will be able to make it at 3 then? i just want to make sure there will be enough ppl that we should actually do it. -amy
[2005-04-15 13:00:04] - amy: i live close to merrifield. - mig
[2005-04-15 12:59:59] - I gather that Cheney doesn't plan to run, so does it go to the republican candidate, no matter who that is? - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:59:04] - Hey, my annual irritation with the "$3 donation to the presidential election campaign" made me wonder, whose election campaign does it go to if the current president isn't eligible for reelection? - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:57:31] - Paul: no, with an S corporation it's more or less like you're a partner, so the company's revenue counts as income (or loss) directly. - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:56:33] - I feel like an idiot because other people seem to manage their taxes with only mild irritation. But when I look at the instructions, all the words turn into pink elephants. I think I was just born without the bureaucratic part of my brain. - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:55:31] - Pierce: Oh, I thought you only had to concern yourself with taxes when you sold the stock of a company. So I just assumed it went south and you bailed out. -paul
[2005-04-15 12:54:30] - Paul: it's not that it didn't work out, just that this year resulted in a net loss. - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:51:57] - Pierce: So you invested in one of these? And I guess it didn't work out? -Paul
[2005-04-15 12:51:35] - Amy: I should be there, but I make no promises as to how long I can stay. -Paul
[2005-04-15 12:47:54] - Thanks for the birthday wishes, everyone (and everyone in advance)
- pierce[2005-04-15 12:47:26] - http://www.google.com/search?q=define%3A+S+Corporation
[2005-04-15 12:47:03] - paul: so you will be there at 3 then? excellent! - amy
[2005-04-15 12:46:54] - pierce: happy birthday! .D -amy
[2005-04-15 12:37:47] - Pierce: What's an S corporation? -Paul
[2005-04-15 12:36:27] - P.S. don't ever get involved in an S corporation, and if you do be sure it doesn't lose money. You have to fill out like seven other pages of forms to establish how much of the loss you can deduct. - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:35:20] - title: I certainly wasn't up until 4:30am doing them, that's for damn sure. - pierce
[2005-04-15 12:33:01] - Amy: I don't know who else is coming and furthermore I also don't have any suggestions for other places so that sounds central enough to me. -Paul
[2005-04-15 12:30:01] - aaron: as i don't juggle, i wouldn't have any clue, but we should get adrian to try this .D -amy
[2005-04-15 12:26:38] - paul: near vinnie's on stringfellow
[2005-04-15 12:26:24] - Amy: Where did you guys play last time? -Paul
[2005-04-15 12:22:37] - ultimate_people: (i'm talking about tomorrow) 3 is fine, and we can move it somewhere else that is more central for ppl who have to go home and change (i don't know where you live miguel?) if you can suggest such a place. - amy
[2005-04-15 12:15:26] - mel: that does sound really good! - aaron
[2005-04-15 12:15:13] - 3 is more doable, if that's acceptable to everyone else. - mig
[2005-04-15 12:08:52] - amy: i also would like to shower and change before pierce's thinger, so 4 is a bit too late. - mig
[2005-04-15 12:05:00] - aaron: mm. a jucy lucy sounds good. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juicy_lucy -mel
[2005-04-15 12:00:15] - amy: Oh and i'll be there for ultimate today ( that's today? ) - aaron
[2005-04-15 11:59:34] - Amy: I wouldn't change it on my account, since it seems to make sense to have it right before if you're playing somewhere close by. -Paul
[2005-04-15 11:59:06] - amy: That's very hard. I tried doing the rubiks cube during a super-basic song and that was very hard. Maybe that's more of a conscious effort than juggling, but physically it's definitely much easier - aaron
[2005-04-15 11:58:14] - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheeseburger invented in 1935, and it looks like the sandwich 1st century B.C. We were discussing recent food inventions and this topic came up, so.... - aaron
[2005-04-15 11:57:41] - paul: we could change the time too, or does it just not make sense to do this before, when ppl will want to go home shower, come back, etc? -amy
[2005-04-15 11:56:54] - http://www.m90.org.nyud.net:8090/gallery/video/Qhrome-SoDeep0-3085.wmv kid juggles while playing so deep. i wish the screen was more visible, wonder what his perfects were- amy
[2005-04-15 11:55:34] - Amy: I don't know if I'm included in the "ultimate_people" group or not, but I think I'll take a pass since I would want to shower and change in between playing frisbee and going to Pierce's thing and a 4:00 start doesn't leave much time for that. -Paul
[2005-04-15 11:45:48] - ultimate_people: hey, how does 4 sound? meet at vinnie's again? that way we'll all be in the area for pierce's thinger? -Amy
[2005-04-15 11:45:13] - Dave: Oh, it only takes 60% to overturn a filibuster? In that case, it's a lot less stupid than I thought. Still, though, I wonder what the point is to allowing a minority to hold up a majority like that. -paul
[2005-04-15 11:43:46] - Paul: The reason it is an issue is because the Repubs have 55 votes atm, so they can't end the filibusters -dave
[2005-04-15 11:43:09] - Paul: well, not really. it takes 60/100 votes to overcome a filibuster. So, it's really the difference between 50 votes for someone to win, vs 60 votes for someone to win -dave
[2005-04-15 11:42:53] - paul: well, technically we're supposed to be a republic, not an actual democracy. - mig
[2005-04-15 11:36:48] - Mig: I think I agree that it seems kinda silly though. We make this big fuss about democracy but when it all comes down to it, it just takes a couple really disgruntled people to completely derail what the majority in Congress thinks. -Paul
[2005-04-15 11:28:00] - paul: yeah, that is one positive i see in it as well. - mig
[2005-04-15 11:26:53] - As for me, I tend to like them because it tends to slow things down. The more time Congress wastes reading names out of the phone book means less time they can use to pass more laws. -Paul
[2005-04-15 11:26:35] - i've always found the concept of the filibuster to be really silly. - mig
[2005-04-15 11:25:33] - Seriously, though, for those that hold democracy in high regard, this seems like the ultimate slap in the face where an extreme minority can thwart the wishes of a vast majority. I understand the arguments for it, but I cannot see how somebody who claims to support democracy can support filibusters without being a hypocrite of some sort. -Paul
[2005-04-15 11:23:59] - Dave: Depends on who the nominee is and who is filibustering it.
-Paul[2005-04-15 11:15:45] - with this whole changing of the law to disallow filibusters of presidiential nominees...what do people here think? Should a minority of the senate be allowed to bar potential court appointees from being voted on? -dave
[2005-04-15 10:49:55] - mig: you're right though, in-general, I'm against social engineering programs -dave
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