Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Wouldn't Ask (Trees And Things)

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 13:10:35 EST

And what of the problems which can't be cured by decency?

Uh. INdecency?

No, seriously, some problems can't be solved.

gerrymander: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 14:55:30 EST

You don't do all you can to eliminate the competition, kill, slaughter or ignore the needy so you can live in the lap of luxury and drive limosines.

If you believe this is what the US is doing in Iraq, you have a very disjointed view of who is ca

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 13:28:52 EST

Yeah we'll compare. Cheers!

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 12:42:54 EST

I'd like to see how you'd fare to spend 4% of your income on something that will have no return on investment and end up costing you double that or more in the long run.

So, you want to see my bar tab basically?

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:55:50 EST

Social Security, you seem to consider this spending as some kind of mistake. The time when we did not have social security was quite disastrous. There was this thing, a world wide depression they called it. The older folks we shit out of

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:44:56 EST

If you want to argue "those are Americans, not foreigners," fine -- but then you need to explain why your argument doesn't also apply to all other foreign aid. That grain could be converted to ethanol, and those AIDS drugs don't manufacture themselves.

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:37:07 EST
Rombuu, talk to me in a couple of years. The 4% we're talking about is only the up front costs. The back end costs are always higher. I'd like to see how you'd fare to spend 4% of your income on something that will have no return on inves

gerrymander: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 14:08:49 EST
Can you honestly say that the return on investment in Iraq will be worth the costs, considering what we are going to face over the next generation?
When you put it that way, almost nothing the US does to assist the poor and disenfranchised is wor

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 13:44:43 EST
Yeah, there are opportunity costs for everything.
4 whole percent..wow. Yep.. bankruptcy is right around the corner.

gerrymander: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 13:41:52 EST
The cost of the Iraq war: $446,248,000,000+.
[...]
America's GDP is a prosperous 13.3 trillion dollars.
Working the math backward on that gives us an estimated $9 billion/month expenditure, and roughly a 0.8% per year expense from t

keta: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 12:22:08 EST
My point is that what the people think is important is a mere trifle to what the government of the day thinks is important.

nmiguy: oops

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 12:20:50 EST
Since, not sing. Damn typo. The point is that it is a high percentage of financial expenditure, and we still have yet to really pay for this war, for veterans health and benefits, and for all the lawsuits for crimes committed by the US. T

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 12:17:14 EST
The cost of the Iraq war: $446,248,000,000+. For that price we could have insured 267 million children. That is enough to insure every child in the US. Or we could have hired 7.7 million teachers for th

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 18:50:54 EST
Fine, we should leave then.. what the hell is your point?

keta: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 16:46:45 EST
Well, apparently the American people think it's time for the US to get out of Iraq, and it's important.
So tell me again how wanting something important makes it so.

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 15:21:49 EST
20 Billion a month? Heck put that back in social security.
I'd rather they flush it down the toilet than waste it on propping up the social sercurity system, frankly.
I just pointed out that defense spending as a % of GDP is lower

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:49:48 EST
Rombuu, the Iraq war is like 20 billion dollars a month. That's a LOT of fucking money. And the fiscal responsibility doesn't end with that spending, but in projecting costs, interest and future likely developments. Return on investment?

3fingerspointback: Re: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 23:25:33 EST
Back when Stephen Hawking asked Yahoo how humanity could survive the future, it occurred to me to give this answer. However, I was worried that he might take offense, giv

Paris Hilton: Incest?

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 22:26:53 EST
That's hot.

uncarved block: A Simple Solution

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:33:28 EST
Whenever the subject of the "decline of the university" comes up, I have many mixed responses. The first is to wonder when, exactly, universities were ever all free wheeling in the first place; writers, journalists, and provocative thin

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:07:09 EST
I'm sure the Democratic congress will do a great job controlling the purse-strings like they have doing...well...whatever the hell it is they've done since they got elected.

thefadd: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 19:36:50 EST
and we probably will if Bush continues to be so negligent in his defense spending.

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 19:10:13 EST
You can add those back in, and you still aren't even near historical averages, much less make any sort of rational case that defense spending out out of control and is OMG! going to bankrupt the country (in 50 years or whatever your children's children's t

thefadd: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:57:09 EST
Indeed, actual spending on defense is woefully negligent enough to give any real conservative like George Will a massive headache or at least an extreme distaste for the current "Republican" in office.

Thalia: Re: discuss.

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:46:14 EST
Eugenics have been used to foister great injustices in the world, and the Holocaust did not make Germany all of a sudden "smarter".
That would be because on average Jews are smarter than Germans.
Thalia

Thalia: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:44:46 EST
That's because "defense spending" doesn't include the "special appropriations" for Iraq and Afghanistan. The classic conservative way of doing math.
Thalia

thefadd: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 18:31:32 EST
I'm pretty big on results as opposed to the standard statistics so many internet spinners are wont to base their rants on. The fact of the matter is employment rose and crime fell in real terms under Clinton. Inner city residents were ready to riot and mak

uncarved block: Activism

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 17:59:31 EST
Ah, by "dangerous" as applied to the human condition, I was thinking more in the ideological sense. There's a whole lot of folks (on all sides of the political spectrum) out there with a lot of notions they want to put into action, but very f

Jackkeefe: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 17:09:29 EST
I'm curious as to what specific acts of Bill Clinton you believe "strengthened the base of our economy." To me, crediting or blaming a President for the performance of the economy during his tenure is similarly to crediting the bear patrol for keepin

thefadd: Re: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:47:52 EST
It would be redemptive for quadriplegics if their handicap made them most ideal for the trip. Indeed, it is usually those most marginalized by one society who are willing to make the sacrifices to begin a new one. In space, we would be even more dependent

thefadd: Re: Clarification

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:41:53 EST
I think it might be easier to just cross breed the people with some dogs that eat their own crap. Since you know, we are talking about space travel and all that.

Steve Urkel: Re: there, I took your bait

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:36:48 EST
It's not bait, this is a complex issue worthy of discussion. For example even some on the pro-abortion side think allowing to individuals to use genetic tests to selective abort is wrong in and of itself in the case of sex selective abortions, others on th

3fingerspointback: Clarification

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:31:05 EST
If you sequester your original space travelers in a closed system with a forced organic diet for a few months...
Should really be
If, while your original space travelers are still on Earth, you sequester them in a sterile environment and pu

thefadd: there, I took your bait

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:25:18 EST
There's a reason "soft" eugenics as you've termed it is okay and eugenics is not. I had genetics in high school, too, so don't try to conflate the two with a basic reproductive analysis. Individuals making choices about the betterment of their own lives an

Steve Urkel: Re: discuss.

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:09:42 EST
The reason the question is considered dangerous is because of the implications of eugenics, but whether it is actually happpening or not is independent of anything to do with eugenics.
Eugenics is something that needs to be discussed more openly. Most p

rombuu: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 16:06:52 EST
Funny you say that since defense spending as a percentage of GDP is at near historical lows. But hell, don't let facts ruin a good rant. The line about bankrupting our children's children is great... puts it far enough in the future no on

thefadd: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:57:47 EST
Clinton (Bill) did so much to strengthen the base of our economy, that it would take a lot more (and Bush II still certainly has time to do some damage but I just don't see him with the evil streak of Reaganomics) than raging budget deficits put the countr

3fingerspointback: Re: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:47:25 EST
if it's recycled properly - as it would be
That's the rub. Theoretically, all that one really needs to do to recycle feces is to give it a good pass through the microwave and add some supplements. I've heard it thrown out--but haven't

nmiguy: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 14:55:20 EST
He still can't hold a candle to Darth Reagan.
You think the cold war spending was bad? The Iraq war spending will be bankrupting our childrens children.
Bush is worse than I thought he'd be by a large margin, and at least as bad

nmiguy: Monday

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 14:43:54 EST
Monday is my weekend, which means it's time for groceries and laundry.
There's a dangerous idea, making Monday your weekend. The result would be weekends that suck.

nmiguy: discuss.

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 14:29:29 EST
Is the average intelligence of Western nations declining because duller people are having more children than smarter people?
I don't think that eugenics makes as much difference in the "average intelligence" question posed here. Western na

Steve Urkel: Re: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:54:08 EST
I don't think it would be hard for spacefareres to get over the coprophagia taboo if it's recycled properly - as it would be. I don't understand what you mean by and and brain surgery. Incest - you mean on a journey through space of many generations eventu

thefadd: Re: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:49:52 EST
-More humans are better off, materially and spiritually, than at any time in history.
I think this is a dangerous idea but not for the reasons one might expect. Perhaps I'll be stepping on your toes here but I think we just don't know the answ

3fingerspointback: Re: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:46:40 EST
Coprophagia and cannibalism are probably the most unsettling ones. Also acts of amputation and and brain surgery that no surgeon could perform today while keeping their job. Possibly incest, as well.

Steve Urkel: Re: I come to debase the currency

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:08:11 EST
Interesting insights.
My jab at Universities is a dig, though I bring it up mostly because it's sad. We have the situation where certain topics discussed openly in ordinary settings by regular people are unmentionable in elite circles.
A major proble

uncarved block: A Couple Of Mine

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:53:18 EST
One of my favorite earlier examples of dangerous thinking comes from Bertrand Russell, who noted that the Soviet Union and Plato's Republic were remarkably similar, thereby irritating both the Communists and traditionalists at the same time.

gerrymander: Oooh, oooh, I know!

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:25:56 EST
"No smoking within 15 feet of the entrance" and "don't drink and drive."

rombuu: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 10:36:00 EST
America loves the myth of the noble savage for some reason.... probably satisfies their need for guilty about things or something...

keta: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 10:25:00 EST
Did Native Americans engage in genocide and despoil the landscape?
Yes, but they leave it to the white man to perfect these tasks.

rombuu: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 10:16:46 EST
Did Native Americans engage in genocide and despoil the landscape?
Is there any question about this one? The Anasazi didn't build those cliff dwellings in the middle of the desert.. they built them near forests then systematically destroyed

MayorBob: Regarding adoption markets.

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 08:18:47 EST
There already is one and has been for some time. Childless couples who wish to/have to adopt children must prepare themselves to submit to great expense and time delays in their efforts to find a child. In most cases, they are looking for a new

port1080: Re: I come to debase the currency

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 07:56:25 EST
In profound contrast to the typical university professor, I favor free speech and the free exchange of ideas in general
Since I'm in an academic career path right now it may shock you to find that I generally agree with this sentiment (even if

port1080: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 07:02:55 EST
It's not that they don't acknowledge it - they've acknowledged it for a long time (this book is probably required reading for every graduate and most undergraduate science m

Steve Urkel: strictly taboo

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 04:19:59 EST
What taboos are those?

Steve Urkel: I come to debase the currency

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 04:16:50 EST
In profound contrast to the typical university professor, I favor free speech and the free exchange of ideas in general, but beyond that there are various reasons why open discussion of the ideas on that list should be tolerated. I think discussing the 'ga

3fingerspointback: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 02:34:50 EST
I'm sure dangerous ideas should be discussed. Most of the examples listed are only truly "dangerous" in the minds of people who wish for an excuse to close off discussion. Whether homosexuality is environmentally determined has absolutely no be

Thalia: Re: Danger! Danger!: Questions Will Robinson Would

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 00:09:11 EST
My dangerous idea: Scientists refuse to consider science which conflict with their prejudices. They will ignore the scientific method in order to avoid having to reconsider.
Sadly true, and well documented. Despite this, scientists ref

rEvolution inAction: A:

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 23:12:11 EST
Yes.