>> ^EmptyFriend:

I'm not disagreeing. I'm actually currently in the middle of a research project on the decision to scrap Constellation and the implications. All I was saying is that taking the anger out on such a small program isn't fair. For $10M you'd have a hard time doing something as simple as upgrading all the PCs in a ship class to WindowsXP (and yes, that is something that is only now happening).
The total cost to launch a space shuttle into orbit is incredibly high though, also. Like in the $1B territory.
>> ^mentality:
>> ^EmptyFriend:
>> ^mentality:
So this is what $553,800,000,000 a year gets you.

_{Iraq and Afghanistan not included.}

good thing you took out the iraq and afghanistan money (or tried to at least), wouldn't want that number to seem ridiculously untrue.
a little search says this contract wasn't even $10 million (which is actually pretty small).
http://www.ga.com/news.php?read=1&id=72&page=7
EDIT: and just to be clear, i do think military and defense spending is way too high, but i at least support the development of new technologies as opposed to the continual support/retrofit of old stuff.


Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize that new technologies to kill people were more important than other kinds of research. Good thing we're slashing NASA's budget so we can better conduct an asymmetrical war on terror using the power of electromagnetism.
Sorry for the snark, but the ridiculous defense spending, record deficit, budget cuts in all the wrong places, and development of weapons systems grossly out of touch with what's needed, is seriously pissing me off. And that goes for the F22/F35 too no matter how f awesome they are.




It's $10 million invested from the US office of Naval Research from June 2006 to Jan 2009. It doesn't say how much was invested in the last two years, and how much the project costs in total, including other sources of funding. And that's just for a proof of concept. How much is it going to cost taxpayers to make a version fit for service, and they start arming ships with it? Yeah, billions sound like the right territory.

I'm not disagreeing. I'm actually currently in the middle of a research project on the decision to scrap Constellation and the implications. All I was saying is that taking the anger out on such a small program isn't fair. For $10M you'd have a hard time doing something as simple as upgrading all the PCs in a ship class to WindowsXP (and yes, that is something that is only now happening).

The total cost to launch a space shuttle into orbit is incredibly high though, also. Like in the $1B territory.
>> ^mentality:

>> ^EmptyFriend:
>> ^mentality:
So this is what $553,800,000,000 a year gets you.

_{Iraq and Afghanistan not included.}

good thing you took out the iraq and afghanistan money (or tried to at least), wouldn't want that number to seem ridiculously untrue.
a little search says this contract wasn't even $10 million (which is actually pretty small).
http://www.ga.com/news.php?read=1&id=72&page=7
EDIT: and just to be clear, i do think military and defense spending is way too high, but i at least support the development of new technologies as opposed to the continual support/retrofit of old stuff.


Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize that new technologies to kill people were more important than other kinds of research. Good thing we're slashing NASA's budget so we can better conduct an asymmetrical war on terror using the power of electromagnetism.
Sorry for the snark, but the ridiculous defense spending, record deficit, budget cuts in all the wrong places, and development of weapons systems grossly out of touch with what's needed, is seriously pissing me off. And that goes for the F22/F35 too no matter how f awesome they are.

[redacted]

>> ^EmptyFriend:

>> ^mentality:
So this is what $553,800,000,000 a year gets you.

_{Iraq and Afghanistan not included.}

good thing you took out the iraq and afghanistan money (or tried to at least), wouldn't want that number to seem ridiculously untrue.
a little search says this contract wasn't even $10 million (which is actually pretty small).
http://www.ga.com/news.php?read=1&id=72&page=7
EDIT: and just to be clear, i do think military and defense spending is way too high, but i at least support the development of new technologies as opposed to the continual support/retrofit of old stuff.



Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize that new technologies to kill people were more important than other kinds of research. Good thing we're slashing NASA's budget so we can better conduct an asymmetrical war on terror using the power of electromagnetism.

*Sorry for the snark, but the ridiculous defense spending, record deficit, budget cuts in all the wrong places, and development of weapons systems grossly out of touch with what's needed, is seriously pissing me off. And that goes for the F22/F35 too no matter how f***** awesome they are.

From Wikipedia: "A false dilemma (also called false dichotomy, the either-or fallacy, fallacy of false choice, black and white thinking or the fallacy of exhaustive hypotheses) is a type of logical fallacy that involves a situation in which only two alternatives are considered, when in fact there are additional options."

Thus, by definition "a choice between a moderate right-wing party and a hard-right nationalist party" is a false dichotomy. I agree that FPTP voting is the major reason for this in presidential elections, which creates a two party system on other other spheres of government. But without seeing the underlying false dichotomy, the general population will stay under the illusion that their votes represent a significant choice, and will keep playing red-vs-blue.

As for me being part of the problem, I respectfully disagree. I'm not an American citizen, and I'm not residing in the U.S. I maintain that the U.S. balance sheet looks ridiculous and current levels of government spending are not sustainable whether you like it or not.

>> ^NetRunner:

Did you even read the comment you're responding to?
The problem is that there's no left in this country's governance at all. It's not a false dichotomy between the parties, it's just a choice between a moderate right-wing party and a hard-right nationalist party. I feel pretty strongly about wanting to have the moderates over the fascists, even though I'm not particularly happy with the moderates.
Why aren't there more than two choices? Because that's just how first past the post voting works. More than that though, it's because there's a really big propaganda machine that constantly demonizes anyone who's even slightly left, and constantly pushes the idea that all suffering in the world is the fault of government, and it'll all get better if we just vote in people who mouth those same words while they cut taxes on businesses, slash government aid to the poor, and make worker safety laws a thing of the past...
Incidentally, you're part of the problem as a person who proclaims that deficit "spending" is the issue. The problem in this country isn't the government's balance sheet, it's high unemployment, and ridiculous concentration of wealth coupled with the growing formalization of the idea that our corporate rulers may commit any atrocity they please with impunity.

Did you even read the comment you're responding to?

The problem is that there's no left in this country's governance at all. It's not a false dichotomy between the parties, it's just a choice between a moderate right-wing party and a hard-right nationalist party. I feel pretty strongly about wanting to have the moderates over the fascists, even though I'm not particularly happy with the moderates.

Why aren't there more than two choices? Because that's just how first past the post voting works. More than that though, it's because there's a really big propaganda machine that constantly demonizes anyone who's even slightly left, and constantly pushes the idea that all suffering in the world is the fault of government, and it'll all get better if we just vote in people who mouth those same words while they cut taxes on businesses, slash government aid to the poor, and make worker safety laws a thing of the past...

Incidentally, you're part of the problem as a person who proclaims that deficit "spending" is the issue. The problem in this country isn't the government's balance sheet, it's high unemployment, and ridiculous concentration of wealth coupled with the growing formalization of the idea that our corporate rulers may commit any atrocity they please with impunity.
>> ^flavioribeiro:

I think the first step is to eliminate the Democrat/Republican false dichotomy. I'm not American, and almost every time I criticize the Obama administration, I hear "yeah, but the Republicans...". First of all, who said anything about the Republicans? And second, it's not as if they have a fundamentally different way of running the country.
Also, given the current levels of deficit spending, it's irrelevant whether you call yourself a Democrat, Republican or Libertarian. The U.S. has a very grim long-term outlook, and the budget cuts proposed by the Congress are insufficient. And to see why actual budget cuts aren't enacted, you only need to follow the money. Things will never change as long as the population thinks the "other party" represents the opposition.

>> ^gwiz665:

blocked for me too.
Also, Fergie can't sing.


I'd have agreed with you yesterday, but at least for this song, she sounds...interesting. And everything else aside, she does have a lovely posterior.

>> ^Winstonfield_Pennypacker:

The robber barons of America's past abused power in a way far more like what Stewart is whining about here. They ran roughshod over people, and there were no laws to stop them. A good thing happened, and the people forced government to pass laws that allowed government to regulate such abuses. It was a good thing.

Yes, so let's do that again. We just need to roll back the robber barons' acquisition of government. They took it over in the immediate aftermath of the progressive era in the early 20th century -- by 1929 they basically ran Washington, just like now.

Back then, people demanded a New Deal, and got one. We had an era of real growth, where the resulting prosperity was relatively equally shared. The rising tide really did raise all boats. Not because businesses were more kindhearted, but because we had strong unions, and regulators who saw their job as actually regulating business.

Then Ronald Reagan came along, and it became Mourning in America. Unions got systematically broken up and destroyed. Business was welcomed into Washington with open arms, and allowed to write regulation. An anti-Fed objectivist became chairman of the Fed. Taxes for the rich were slashed, so were benefits to the poor. Everyone (who matters) wins!

Now we're getting a Great Depression of our own, and it looks like instead of us getting a New Deal, the robber barons are. More union busting, more tax cuts for the rich, more deregulation, and all so we can "compete" with authoritarian dictatorships that run sweatshops, by setting up our own here at home.

I've been playing Dragon Age II and I'm enjoying it, but not nearly as much as I enjoyed Dragon Age Origins. This one feels rushed and I don't like not being able to put different armour on the companions.

The combat spawns are very annoying and the combat in general feels more hack and slash with less strategy...

this sketch is slashing-edge

You're right. National Propaganda Radio is only a drop in the bucket. Even the 100 billion the fakeservatives originally wanted to slash is nothing.


>> ^xxovercastxx:

I think it could have been better. He should have kept his focus on the fact that this is a drop in the bucket compared to the budget imbalance, let alone our debt.

>> ^sillma:

>> ^BoneRemake:
Give me another Sam and Max, Kings quest, Space quest or flippin Grim Fandango over this regurgitated shit. its always the same story line with these games.
Not to detract from the graphics and advancement, but its just so bland this crud they make these days.
Thief, now there was a good game. Hitman was good as well.

Thief was one of the best games ever, up till the point the zombies came in. After that it turned into pretty much every other hack'n'slash out there
Hitman was the same thing, the end was stupid.
But games like the battlefield series ain't really about the singleplayer experience, it's the team deathmatch und stuff action which is honed better and better over time. Of course for players who don't see that as a thing they like, it's pointless to see money put into these kinds of games, I for sure would like to see my share of both types, but meh, for some reason the adventure type games and such aren't popular enough on a wide scale...ah well. R.I.P Looking Glass Studios, the maker of many of my most favourite games of all time.


System Shock 2 was rad.

>> ^BoneRemake:

Give me another Sam and Max, Kings quest, Space quest or flippin Grim Fandango over this regurgitated shit. its always the same story line with these games.
Not to detract from the graphics and advancement, but its just so bland this crud they make these days.
Thief, now there was a good game. Hitman was good as well.


Thief was one of the best games ever, up till the point the zombies came in. After that it turned into pretty much every other hack'n'slash out there

Hitman was the same thing, the end was stupid.

But games like the battlefield series ain't really about the singleplayer experience, it's the team deathmatch und stuff action which is honed better and better over time. Of course for players who don't see that as a thing they like, it's pointless to see money put into these kinds of games, I for sure would like to see my share of both types, but meh, for some reason the adventure type games and such aren't popular enough on a wide scale...ah well. R.I.P Looking Glass Studios, the maker of many of my most favourite games of all time.

Thank you for speaking politely and to the point skinnydaddy. As someone who both fought for this country and knows directly how prisoners are treated, please let me explain my observations.

Manning is being treated vastly different than every other prisoner. High profile inmates, those with no violent issues or issues of self-harm, are taken to a single celled unit (Usually called a lockdown unit, or in the past, called "the hole.") However, those inmates can use the phone, sleep with pillows and blankets, set up video-visitation with family, etc. In fact, they must be given these opportunities (Example, Manning, Parris Hilton, or the POS who smashed a baby's head into the shower and would otherwise die in regular population.)

Now, suicidal inmates are different but the law covers them too. Otherwise, every inmate a Correctional Officer or military officer did not like would be deemed "suicidal." The inmate is usually placed on observation by a Supervisor or certified Medical Staff. Unless obvious signs exist (Trying to slash his wrists for example) the inmate must be regularly evaluated and every reasonable attempt to correct his self-harming behavior must be given. This includes prescribed medications. Notes must be constantly maintained as to why this inmate is where he is. This helps free up 1-Lawsuits, and 2-Man power. Each inmate on Observation takes more resources than, I estimate, 20 regular inmates.


Unfortunately, I would like to agree with you--so this issue could become a non-issue. Sadly, I cannot. Manning means nothing to me--but the bigger picture does. At first Gitmo was spoken about as being fine because it did not apply to citizens. Then people say Manning, a citizen, is fine because he is military. When you embolden to Government to take from its people, or others, you embolden them to take from everyone!

After Manning, it will be some new "classification" of people the government seeks to punish... It is a slippery slope.

BTW I listened to a friend's podcast and he gave our a URL. Before he read out the link he said; "H, t, t, p, colon, forward slash, forward slash".

I thought I stopped him doing that years ago.