PNWI Community Thread version 3.0 (KEEP REFRIGERATED AT ALL TIMES)

[McP3000]

rambo is absurd.



so absurd it's awesome.
When i saw Rambo IV, i smelt the testosterone leaking through the vents into the room.

I wanted to sex a girl, then kill her, then smoke a cigarrette...then sex her again

[Knifeboy]

i got vertigo just watching this:
http://break.com/index/crazy-kid-does-pull-ups-off-crane.html
So did I. I felt truly uncomfortable watching that.. More than I've done with most internet shock videos O_o

[Chu]

I wanted to create a thread to dicusss this, http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/02/05/015231&from=rss - But I cbf, so I figured I'd post it here...

Anyway, it's kinda shitty!

[Knifeboy]

Good thing the RIAA is dying soon >: )

[Chu]

Indeed.
Just, who knows how long? Pulling stunts like this, they could last for a lot longer than we realise :upset:

[Knifeboy]

I think the pulling of stunts like this is what will push them over the edge.
But yes, it'll probably take a long time :/, there's a lot of lobbying power in the RIAA left, and they won't go down without a fight

[Dr Hooch]

I wanted to create a thread to dicusss this, http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/02/05/015231&from=rss - But I cbf, so I figured I'd post it here...

Anyway, it's kinda shitty!

UGH


They surely can't keep this bullshit up.

[ringworm]

i got vertigo just watching this:
http://break.com/index/crazy-kid-does-pull-ups-off-crane.html
that made me queasy as *&^%, wow, I couldnt even watch it all

[ringworm]

wow

http://media.gatewaync.com/wsj/photos/2008/02/05/budgetEnlarge.jpg

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/washington/05budget.html?ex=1359867600&en=e1581dc10a6ec2cf&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

[gregulus]

wow

http://media.gatewaync.com/wsj/photos/2008/02/05/budgetEnlarge.jpg

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/washington/05budget.html?ex=1359867600&en=e1581dc10a6ec2cf&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

good dude, backed hard. :smash::smash::rolleyes:

[totah]

This advert was on the top of the page:

Iran & Ahmadinejad
The Latest News On Our Relationship With Iran From A Trusted Source.
www.NewYorkSun.com/Iran


Lol, I didn't know NY had The Sun. Do ya'll have Page 3 models?

[Dr Hooch]

If all the original american president potentials were in the UK, who do we think would have the best chance of winning? Kucinik? Obama?

[totah]

Good question, buggered if I know.

I like to use bugger on here because I don't have to go to the trouble of evading the censorbot.

[Dr Hooch]

arsehole! wanker! horse tosser!

[totah]

Oh ****** please, ain't no **** gonna get between me and my bitch-*** dick-sucking pussy-lapping porn-making ****machine.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


Nothing is going to come between me and my computer.



EDIT: Didn't pussy and dick and porn used to be censored?

[Dr Hooch]

Maybe Jeremy's moral codes have lapsed a little.

Are we allowed to refer to the penis and the vagina using the medically appropriate terms?

[Smokey D]

This place only censors a few things, and that's often because of exploits Chad could build into the code. Unless it's really offensive, you get away with it.

Except for ***, for some reason.

[guitrguy]

The different skins have different filters, also.

[Smokey D]

Interesting. Standard blue lets you get away with most things.

[Dr Hooch]

I'm on orange, is that filter heavy or not?

Also has chad struck in a while? He was pissing people off when i hadn't been around for very long at that must be getting on for 4 1/2 years now.

Anyone seen plexi in a while either? I know he was around for a stretch, and assume his name is no longer filtered...

[Mr. Ron]

lmfaoooo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-14Nhj05L90

[guitrguy]

Interesting. Standard blue lets you get away with most things.

Orange does too. Like shithead is unfiltered

[Knifeboy]

lmfaoooo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-14Nhj05L90

This video is making me weep

[Mr. Ron]

:shoulder:

[Knifeboy]

I'm feeling so helpless about it that I'm going through the comments and negging anyone who's approving of the video, just to relieve a little of the tension from watching that video

[Mr. Ron]

I'm feeling so helpless about it that I'm going through the comments and negging anyone who's approving of the video, just to relieve a little of the tension from watching that video

Well, if it helps here's a nice rebuttal video done by what looks like a 9th grader who's a Christian that also believes in evolution.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6icgsv91DSc

[Dr Hooch]

you guys should know that the real victory in videos like that is condescending comments.

EDIT:

Eran give me a book to read if i think i might be an anarchist, even though i'm so bourgousie and have like a computer and guitars and all kinds of stuff which i could fit into the back of a pickup truck and drive off with, but wouldn't.

I mean like how would we do science in our anarchist society? We need science, we need to get off this planet for one thing. So, how do all the groups without leaders work together long enough to do anything useful?

Is it unfair to write off the earth completely? If humans ever had a non-earth settlement, even though america would technically own it, it wouldn't matter because america wouldn't be able to do shi1t once they were there. Can you imagine, a society designed with hindsight of past failures? If i was going to pick one group of people i'd want designing the new zero, it'd be scientists. They're so cynical, they'd see through all the hierarchial constructs. They're the sort of people who let things be because it suits them.

[totah]

you guys should know that the real victory in videos like that is condescending comments.

EDIT:

Eran give me a book to read if i think i might be an anarchist, even though i'm so bourgousie and have like a computer and guitars and all kinds of stuff which i could fit into the back of a pickup truck and drive off with, but wouldn't.

I mean like how would we do science in our anarchist society? We need science, we need to get off this planet for one thing. So, how do all the groups without leaders work together long enough to do anything useful?

Is it unfair to write off the earth completely? If humans ever had a non-earth settlement, even though america would technically own it, it wouldn't matter because america wouldn't be able to do shi1t once they were there. Can you imagine, a society designed with hindsight of past failures? If i was going to pick one group of people i'd want designing the new zero, it'd be scientists. They're so cynical, they'd see through all the hierarchial constructs. They're the sort of people who let things be because it suits them.

That's because a real scientist is a nihilist. Nihilism is a philosophy based wholly in logic. But it's a right bugger to live by. How do I plan an outing to a gig if I'm supposed to not take anything on faith/for granted, like the bus arriving on time? Damned complicated, if you akse me.

As for how would science research work. I think the best way is federative, always federative. And not only in the regional sense, but something called a "federation of interest." This is something humans do in every society, and it means what it says on the can. Grouping together according to mutual interest. This could be the simple everyday stuff like getting the food from the silo to the market places, and it could be for homosexual swingers, and for scientists too.

As for exactly how you'd, let's say, decide who gets the best labs or what should be given the most resources for research, as well as all the other little problems I'm sure scientists have, well that's up for the federation members to decide direct-democratically. But you can bet that the subjects for research won't be decided by big money, and won't be hindered by patent legislation. There'd be no need for it.

As for reading material, the stuff I tend to find myself nodding along to consistently is almost all in the pamphlets on www.afed.org.uk. I like this one a lot: http://afed.org.uk/ace/manifest.html

Emma Goldman is hard to disagree with, but she doesn't offer many real, "hard" alternatives, she just has a great analysis of capitalism and the state. Try Kropotkin. He was a Russian scientist and anarchist. He was mad for Darwin. Here's his work, Modern Science and Anarchism: http://rapidshare.com/files/90868172/Kropotkin__Peter_-_Modern_Science_and_Anarchism.pdf.html

This post is long and rambling enough.

[ringworm]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WJeqxuOfQ

[gregulus]

That's because a real scientist is a nihilist. Nihilism is a philosophy based wholly in logic. But it's a right bugger to live by. How do I plan an outing to a gig if I'm supposed to not take anything on faith/for granted, like the bus arriving on time? Damned complicated, if you akse me.

As for how would science research work. I think the best way is federative, always federative. And not only in the regional sense, but something called a "federation of interest." This is something humans do in every society, and it means what it says on the can. Grouping together according to mutual interest. This could be the simple everyday stuff like getting the food from the silo to the market places, and it could be for homosexual swingers, and for scientists too.

As for exactly how you'd, let's say, decide who gets the best labs or what should be given the most resources for research, as well as all the other little problems I'm sure scientists have, well that's up for the federation members to decide direct-democratically. But you can bet that the subjects for research won't be decided by big money, and won't be hindered by patent legislation. There'd be no need for it.

As for reading material, the stuff I tend to find myself nodding along to consistently is almost all in the pamphlets on www.afed.org.uk. I like this one a lot: http://afed.org.uk/ace/manifest.html

Emma Goldman is hard to disagree with, but she doesn't offer many real, "hard" alternatives, she just has a great analysis of capitalism and the state. Try Kropotkin. He was a Russian scientist and anarchist. He was mad for Darwin. Here's his work, Modern Science and Anarchism: http://rapidshare.com/files/90868172/Kropotkin__Peter_-_Modern_Science_and_Anarchism.pdf.html

This post is long and rambling enough.
science isn't nihilistic because scientists find meaning in things.

[McP3000]

lmfaoooo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-14Nhj05L90
This almost looks like a joke video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WJeqxuOfQ
hahaha

247 being the peak

yeah right

[Der Übermensch]

Eran give me a book to read if i think i might be an anarchist, even though i'm so bourgousie
What is Property? by Pierre Joseph Proudhon

[Dr Hooch]

also eran your anarchist friends annoy me they seem to think the only motivation one could have for agreeing with them is being poor and powerless


they're not going to change anything



















i mean not going to change anything like that, brahooom brahooom

[ringworm]

so you think fat people cost us more in healthcare huh? :)

http://news.wired.com/dynamic/stories/O/OBESITY_COST?SITE=WIRE&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-02-05-02-58-08


LONDON (AP) -- Preventing obesity and smoking can save lives, but it doesn't save money, researchers reported Monday. It costs more to care for healthy people who live years longer, according to a Dutch study that counters the common perception that preventing obesity would save governments millions of dollars.





this was also a good watch last night

http://www.pbs.org/mormons/

http://www.pbs.org/mormons/view/

[McP3000]

so you think fat people cost us more in healthcare huh? :)

http://news.wired.com/dynamic/stories/O/OBESITY_COST?SITE=WIRE&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-02-05-02-58-08
BRING ON THE DORITOS

om nom nom nom

[ringworm]

:angry:
so who's the healthy squirrel in here costing me more money?
:angry:



tee hee :p

[YDtoad]

this was also a good watch last night

http://www.pbs.org/mormons/

http://www.pbs.org/mormons/view/

yeah I caught some of that. Interesting stuff.

[Knifeboy]

They forgot to factor in how much healthy people contribute to the economy compared to fat people and smokers

That'd probably even it out a bit

Edit: .. Oh, they mentioned that at the end of the article.... redundant post++

[ringworm]

yeah I caught some of that. Interesting stuff.
man, that story about them killing 100+ people simply passing through was crazy

[1338 h4x0r]

lmfaoooo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-14Nhj05L90

I was feeling very glum today until this video came along and gave me cause to feel massively superior. Thanks.

[ringworm]

worth a watch, even for the haters :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUYDt7kC3Z0



Did anyone see RealTime last night? It was a good show

Here's the links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7H2KvErXYg&feature=related


Part 2 has some real good points

[1338 h4x0r]

worth a watch, even for the haters :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUYDt7kC3Z0



Did anyone see RealTime last night? It was a good show

Here's the links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7H2KvErXYg&feature=related


Part 2 has some real good points

The part about antibiotics was nutty tbqh.

Usually I like that show a lot.

[ringworm]

The part about antibiotics was nutty tbqh..
eh, i have to agree w/Bill on that one, thats basically how I feel

it seems no one questions what they consume or even know whats in it, like we're conditioned to trust instead of conditioned to question

Bob Costa was interesting to hear, I liked some of the stuff he brought up

[totah]

also eran your anarchist friends annoy me they seem to think the only motivation one could have for agreeing with them is being poor and powerless

You mean AFed? It's not the only motivation, but it's a pretty regular one if you're joining an anarchist-communist organisation. And since they believe that an anarchist revolution can come only through the self-organisation of the working class, it's pretty sensible to appeal to them.

If people put you down for not being working class (which is stupid) tell them it's not your fault you were born to wealthy parents and a class struggle is against the class system, not against a different class.

Me and some mates got blacklisted from this discussion group for "dressing working class". Not really blacklisted, just called "lifestylists" and made to feel unwelcome. This is the ugly side of anarchism. Though I never fully understood what being a lifestyle anarchist involves.

[ringworm]

now this is beat up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAGb7_g4Aso

a link to go along with the video
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1969217/posts

[totah]

This is way funnier:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROn_9302UHg

[Mr. Ron]

Remember back in I think, August, those nukes were mistakingly loaded onto that airplane?

Well, 6 people that were in charge of the transport of those nukes are now dead. Weird.

[1338 h4x0r]

eh, i have to agree w/Bill on that one, thats basically how I feel

it seems no one questions what they consume or even know whats in it, like we're conditioned to trust instead of conditioned to question


I had a benign but unsightly fungal infection on my arms for some reason, for which I used Conofite. The fungus died. How else would I have gotten rid of it? Runes? :p

[spitfirejunky]

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/09/airforce_nuclear_warhead_070905/

Dunno.

[Dr Hooch]

Remember back in I think, August, those nukes were mistakingly loaded onto that airplane?

Well, 6 people that were in charge of the transport of those nukes are now dead. Weird.

:lol: seriously?

[Against Miik!]

now this is beat up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAGb7_g4Aso

a link to go along with the video
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1969217/posts

I lol'd at the related videos

[Mr. Ron]

:lol: seriously?


Yup.

1 motorcycle accident, 3 car accidents and 2 suicides.

Now, I'm not up usually for any tin foil hattery, but come on, the odds?

[Knifeboy]

If you're careless enough to accidentally load up nuclear missiles, then I reckon the chances of you landing in a car accident are quite high


;)

[Dr Hooch]

I don't think it can be that hard. They probably look pretty similar, the only difference is the heads

[totah]

That's assassination if I ever saw it. But I don't see why the government would do that. Maybe they were gonna sell the warheads some way but the plan failed and they had to be silenced so the buyer won't be compromised. Maybe it was Nicholas Cage.


HAPPY VALENTINES DAY PEOPLE!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=br-D7UneS0E

[guitrguy]

If you're careless enough to accidentally load up nuclear missiles, then I reckon the chances of you landing in a car accident are quite high


;)This.

[the2stranger]

Or they made it look like a car accident but also commited suicide.

[Otherside]

My sociology professor just told me that Hilary was more left than Obama and then when I confronted him about it he told me that most people would agree that Obama is more centrist than her


what's really said is that he's also one of the democratic members of the House of Reps for north carolina :(

[Mr. Ron]

Idk, the odds of all of them dieing in such a short time span is suspicious. Ew I'm sounding like a tin foil hat man. :(

[south_of_heaven 11]

Uh so I just watched "SiCKO" in my political science class.

So does anyone here, that live in countries like Canada, that have universal health care want to tell me how you feel about it? I know this has probably been done to death but just humor me please. I'd really like to learn more about it.

[ringworm]

i hate how they pass off that movie without acknowledging its fallacies and how the only solution is to emulate Canada or the UK, its a shame people cant distinguish between a real docu and what MM does

[south_of_heaven 11]

That's kinda what I'm trying to do atm...I'd like to get a lot of the stuff straight.

[Dave de Sylvia]

From what I remember he didn't make a very good case. Even though it's not hard to discredit the US system, given that it's the worst in the world and all. That said I only saw it in theatres when it was released and haven't since.

[guitrguy]

Idk, the odds of all of them dieing in such a short time span is suspicious. Ew I'm sounding like a tin foil hat man. :(

Something like that is hardly worth worth a gov't plot to kill them. We all found out about it, and the military acknowledged it. I just don't see anything, but coincidence.

[Mr. Ron]

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/02/13/whos-your-maverick-john-mccain-votes-in-favor-of-torture/

[Iskandar]

My sociology professor just told me that Hilary was more left than Obama and then when I confronted him about it he told me that most people would agree that Obama is more centrist than her


what's really said is that he's also one of the democratic members of the House of Reps for north carolina :(Both Hillary and Obama, like most Democrats, are more or less in the center of broader political discourse. (And they're really not very far apart, ideologically.) America has no real equivalent to the "left" of other Western nations.

In before Steve comes in whining about how Democrats are center-left in America.
So does anyone here, that live in countries like Canada, that have universal health care want to tell me how you feel about it? I know this has probably been done to death but just humor me please. I'd really like to learn more about it.I live in Canada and it's great. Only problem is that it can be hard to find a doctor if you're new to the area.

[Mr. Ron]

Both Hillary and Obama, like most Democrats, are more or less in the center of broader political discourse. (And they're really not very far apart, ideologically.) America has no real equivalent to the "left" of other Western nations.

In before Steve comes in whining about how Democrats are center-left in America.
I live in Canada and it's great. Only problem is that it can be hard to find a doctor if you're new to the area.

So no long waits, or anything the American media says about it?

[guitrguy]

If you do have to wait, a hot nurse services you to keep you occupied.

[Against Miik!]

A lot of people don't understand that nothing is free.

There is no money in the United States to support a socialized health care program. It would be fiscally irresponsible. Thats why I hate Hillarycare. Barack sorta has the idea. He just wants to lower costs, but with subsidies, with are sorta bad.

Pro Hillary people point out that Baracks plan would not cover 15 million people. I say, thats fine. Those 15 million people are probably people that wouldn't get health care anyways. I am in no way for a MANDATE on purchasing health insurance.

[Dave de Sylvia]

Socialised healthcare is cheaper and more cost effective than a privatised system.

[sweboy]

I live in Communist Sweden, and it's great. I had some pain in mah teeth the other week, called up the dentist, got an appointment two days later, walked in, opened mouth, dentist poked around, closed mouth, walked out. (though dental care is only free until you're 21.)

[Against Miik!]

Socialised healthcare is cheaper and more cost effective than a privatised system.

Well the U.S. doesn't have a truly privatized system. It is still federally run for the most part, so is prone to all of those problems, but people still have to pay for it like a privatized system. The two don't go together very well. We kinda have to go one way or the other.

[Hababi]

Both Hillary and Obama, like most Democrats, are more or less in the center of broader political discourse. (And they're really not very far apart, ideologically.) America has no real equivalent to the "left" of other Western nations.


Sure we do. They're just not that popular. We also have no major equivalent to Iran's ultra right wing party.

[Tyr]

I live in Communist Sweden, and it's great. I had some pain in mah teeth the other week, called up the dentist, got an appointment two days later, walked in, opened mouth, dentist poked around, closed mouth, walked out. (though dental care is only free until you're 21.)

I actually haven't been to the dentist since I was 19, so I've never had to pay for dental care either.

[Iskandar]

Sure we do. They're just not that popular. We also have no major equivalent to Iran's ultra right wing party.They lack any political power because there's no traditional left-wing party, like social democrats or labour or something. So they either join the Democrats (where they're a minority) or run for third parties which lose.

Yeah, you can argue that if America wanted a third party it'd have one, but it's not so simple in practice. The existence of two huge parties who monopolize almost all political power prevents any alternatives from gaining traction.

So no long waits, or anything the American media says about it?No. Maybe if you go to emerge and it's busy, but doesn't that happen everywhere?

See you later brahs, I'm going to make cheesecake.

[Hababi]

They lack any political power because there's no traditional left-wing party, like social democrats or labour or something. So they either join the Democrats (where they're a minority) or run for third parties which lose.

Yeah, you can argue that if America wanted a third party it'd have one, but it's not so simple in practice. The existence of two huge parties who monopolize almost all political power prevents any alternatives from gaining traction.


It's a bit of a chicken and egg issue, but keep in mind that the two parties are hardly immune to change. The Democrat party of today is considerably more left on many issues than it was just four years ago. And the Republican party is shifting on immigration, global warming, etc.

[Reaganista]

A lot of people don't understand that nothing is free.

There is no money in the United States to support a socialized health care program. It would be fiscally irresponsible. Thats why I hate Hillarycare. Barack sorta has the idea. He just wants to lower costs, but with subsidies, with are sorta bad.

Pro Hillary people point out that Baracks plan would not cover 15 million people. I say, thats fine. Those 15 million people are probably people that wouldn't get health care anyways. I am in no way for a MANDATE on purchasing health insurance.

no we could afford it
Sure we do. They're just not that popular. We also have no major equivalent to Iran's ultra right wing party.

the republicans

duh

[Dave de Sylvia]

Well the U.S. doesn't have a truly privatized system. It is still federally run for the most part, so is prone to all of those problems, but people still have to pay for it like a privatized system. The two don't go together very well. We kinda have to go one way or the other.
What do you mean "federally run"? My understanding is that the government subsidises private insurance via tax breaks, provides a limited degree of NFP hospital care and then the Medicaid/Medicare schemes.

[Against Miik!]

Well, the government doesn't personally hand out health care, but they regulate it more than you think. Ever heard of an HMO? The American health care system does not truly exist in a free market.

An often-made claim is that it is expensive to be sick in America.

That may be true, though no more so than any of the more socialist systems in the world perceived as "inexpensive" by those desiring similar government programs here. In those nations, the cost is hidden in individual tax-rates in excess of fifty percent, so the extremely high costs for care are still being paid by the patient, they just don't write the check to the doctor, they write it to the tax collector.

The reality is that for Americans major expense is not in major illnesses (insurance bears most of the brunt in typical cases), but in routine care.

For many years, the federal government has taken an ever-expanding role in our nation's medical care through regulatory and legislative activism. Of course, to oppose federal involvement is to be "anti-health care" or "anti-patient." Never mind that routine health care is arguably less efficient and less accessible than in our recent past, with sick people receiving worse care at higher costs.

What the politicians and their bureaucrats refuse to acknowledge is that the cost of routine health care is spiraling out of control precisely because of the federal involvement.

Most obviously, there is the direct government meddling. Bureaucrats, under authority granted to them by years of irresponsible congressional action, now dictate how medical care is to be offered, in what timetables, quantities and situations. Of course, these directives have nothing to do with the realities of medicine or even the demands of the market, but are simply political directives issued for soundbite effectiveness. While sounding nice, these regulations increase costs by forcing the medical provider to expend greater resources to meet the regulations.

Resources once devoted to assisting patients with their needs must be diverted to meeting bureaucratic regulations. Federal regulations imposed on state governments regarding medical care delivery, or on insurance providers, or employers, or directly on doctors and hospitals, all eventually come back to the consumer in the form of higher checkout costs.

To deal with the ever-rising costs, consumers feel forced to relinquish more control to insurance companies and health maintenance organizations (HMOs). At the same time, doctors are forced into the systems so that the burden of regulatory paperwork can be lifted from them.

The insurers and HMOs only make matters worse by further restricting the consumer's choices and limiting the services a physician in their group can offer. The incentive to cut costs is lost, as physicians (now working essentially as low-level employees) seek to make as much as they can in the new corporate environment, will charge the maximum the HMOs allow.

Consumer complaints about insurers and HMOs compel politicians to write new laws and more regulations to curry voter favor. More regulations breed more costs, limiting more choices, causing more anguish, and the cycle continues.

There are several ways to break the cycle. The most obvious solution is to pull the plug on federal intervention. That, however, is tantamount to political suicide. Who wants to be depicted as wanting to stop "good" regulations and laws, and "hurt" patients?

A more viable solution is to let the consumer and his doctors pull themselves out of the system, by means of medical savings accounts. While this does not solve the entire problem, it provides a larger degree of freedom for those who desire it.

Under an MSA system, a consumer could save pre-tax dollars in a special account. Those dollars would be used to pay for health care expenses, with the patient negotiating directly with the physician of their choice for the care they choose without regard to HMO rules or a bureaucrat's decision. The incentive for the physician is getting paid in cash as the service is rendered, rather than waiting months for an HMO or insurance provider's billing cycle.

With the cash for the MSAs coming from pre-tax dollars, most Americans could afford deposits that would cover routine expenses families' experience in a year. To cover larger expenses, major-medical insurance policies are readily available and fairly inexpensive.

Medical care will always be expensive, regardless of the system. The real question is how much freedom will a patient have in determining the care they receive. It is only when the patient controls the purse strings of his own money that he will have that freedom.


Tway: Well, technically we could. Just like I could by a Corvette because I have a credit card and can get approved for a loan. Does that mean I should? Not necessarily.

[italic zero]

Well, the government doesn't personally hand out health care, but they regulate it more than you think. Ever heard of an HMO?
What do HMOs have to do with the government

[Iskandar]

It's a bit of a chicken and egg issue, but keep in mind that the two parties are hardly immune to change. The Democrat party of today is considerably more left on many issues than it was just four years ago. And the Republican party is shifting on immigration, global warming, etc.They are???:confused: I don't see much difference.

[Hababi]

They are???:confused: I don't see much difference.

National health care, Iraq, security issues, etc. all considerably more left.

[Iskandar]

National health care, Iraq, security issues, etc. all considerably more left.About damned time, if that's the case.

But our NDP has been against Afghanistan and for health care since day one, so you see how much of a gap their still is.

[Against Miik!]

Being willing to combat global warming isn't a liberal or conservative issue. Thats just playing into the stereotype that all liberals are Willie Nelson and all conservatives are Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.

What do HMOs have to do with the government

They were forced on us through government coercion, and they are restrictive to the free market.

[Iskandar]

Is socialized medicine "forced on us through government coercion and restrictive to the free market?"

Innocent question.

[Hababi]

Being willing to combat global warming isn't a liberal or conservative issue. Thats just playing into the stereotype that all liberals are Willie Nelson and all conservatives are Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.


A pretty significant chunk of the GOP still is recalcitrant toward the science and the notion of doing anything about it. They've become the minority, though.

[italic zero]

They were forced on us through government coercion, and they are restrictive to the free market.they weren't forced on us and it's silly to talk about free markets in industries that operate (necessarily) under distinctly different paradigms than the markets on which classical economic theory is based

[Dave de Sylvia]

Well, the government doesn't personally hand out health care, but they regulate it more than you think. Ever heard of an HMO? The American health care system does not truly exist in a free market.
Well I know that, but it doesn't change the fact that America's total healthcare expenditure is grossly in excess of any universal system. I don't understand where you seem to have gained the impression that universal healthcare would cost more than the current model.

[Against Miik!]

I'm not disagreeing that universal health care would be more expensive than what we currently have. I am saying that our current system costs more than it should. We (Washington) need to stop putting corporate interests above those of the people. Thats the problem.

Also, as I said before, there is no money for a socialized health care system. Our current income tax, which isn't all THAT low can barely pay off the interest accumulating on the national debt. Drop taxes, give people more money, allow health care to exist in a true free market, dump federal bureaucracy, and we are set.

Yeah, I'm a bit of an idealist. But so is everybody. The only realist philosophy is "we're ****ed".

and your avatar scares me

A pretty significant chunk of the GOP still is recalcitrant toward the science and the notion of doing anything about it. They've become the minority, though.

Thats nothing inherent about being a Republican though. It just so happens that a lot of Republicans are ****ing morons. So are a good amount of Dems though.

[Dave de Sylvia]

I'm not disagreeing that universal health care would be more expensive than what we currently have.
I think it would though.

I am saying that our current system costs more than it should. We (Washington) need to stop putting corporate interests above those of the people. Thats the problem.
That's only one facet of the problem, though.

Also, as I said before, there is no money for a socialized health care system. Our current income tax, which isn't all THAT low can barely pay off the interest accumulating on the national debt. Drop taxes, give people more money, allow health care to exist in a true free market, dump federal bureaucracy, and we are set.
But the majority of bureaucracy which exists in the healthcare system exists at the private level. The government-run programs are more efficient than the insurance companies.

and your avatar scares me
me too :(

[Against Miik!]

But the majority of bureaucracy which exists in the healthcare system exists at the private level. The government-run programs are more efficient than the insurance companies.

Ooo I don't know about that. I don't think there is a significant difference. Tbqh honest, I don't think there is a quick fix. Kinda like the tax system, we've just gone in circles and put so many rules and regulations in place that we really don't know where we started. I would just nuke the whole thing and start over.

[Dave de Sylvia]

Ooo I don't know about that. I don't think there is a significant difference.
Granted, Medicare has an obscured advantaged because its per capita costs are higher, but the fact remains that it removes the highest-risk actors (elderly and impoverished) from the private health system.

[ringworm]

we've just gone in circles and put so many rules and regulations in place that we really don't know where we started. I would just nuke the whole thing and start over.
this would be a good way to solve many of the problems with our country. Pretty much everything is being completely derailed by mismanagement, wasteful use of funds etc, but instead of focusing on how to fix it, other programs are being looked at.

Kinda like having a few older highways in disrepair, and instead of updating them, we just build a new one that disrupts even more people that were once unaffected.

[totah]

Surely it would be cheaper if you stopped spending so much money on military and space programs and spent it on healthcare instead?

You could flog a few nukes to cover red areas, too.

[Dr Hooch]

totah how many times space programs are vital for the continuation of the human race as we know it

that or mandatory euthanasia for third children and onwards

National health care, Iraq, security issues, etc. all considerably more left.

being antiwar is not an exclusively leftist position, national healthcare they've always wanted and security issues again is less leftist and more "everybody who thinks you can hate the american government without hating freedom"

[Against Miik!]

Thats just bipartisanship at work. Republicans and democrats can believe in the exact same things, it's just how to get those things done that they should differ on. As I said earlier ,there is this stereotype that every liberal is Willie Nelson, and every conservative is Mr. Burns, and even those in Washington often times play right into that.

But since thats how things are, I will play into that too. I'm glad the democrats finally decided to grow a pair and shoot down that damn FISA bill.

Take the fascist part out, and I love Keith Olbermann
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/77138/

[Hababi]

Find out how free trade oriented your Senators/representative is/are:
http://www.freetrade.org/congress

Wow that kinda seems like I'm advertising a site :(

[Iskandar]

As I said earlier ,there is this stereotype that every liberal is Willie Nelson, and every conservative is Mr. Burns, and even those in Washington often times play right into that.That's not true at all. Everyone knows that all conservatives are Adolf Hitler and all liberals are Mahatma Gandhi.

[Dave de Sylvia]

All liberals are Ben Affleck. Duh.

[Iskandar]

no u

[Dave de Sylvia]

tru, tru

[McP3000]

How was "no u" in anyway a reasonable or even coherent response to SOSM's post

[Iskandar]

How was "no u" in anyway a reasonable or even coherent response to SOSM's postDude, this is the community thread.

[Dave de Sylvia]

you have brought disorder upon pnwi

[Iskandar]

no u

[Dave de Sylvia]

tru, tru

[1338 h4x0r]

no u

[Mr. Ron]

Know you

[1338 h4x0r]

Noh ewe

[Mr. Ron]

yo

^ No U!

[Iskandar]

No, you.

[thedeadwalk!]

PNWI Community Thread? More like General Discussion Community Thread.

[Shell]

know hugh

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Grant

[1338 h4x0r]

know yew

http://www.english-longbow.co.uk/largepics/tudor-richard-1.jpg

[Mr. Ron]

badass

[1338 h4x0r]

badass

NO U

[Mr. Ron]

I'M SICK OF THIS



GET OUT OF MY HOUSE

[1338 h4x0r]

I'M SICK OF THIS


GET OUT OF MY HOUSE

I HAVE GROWN BVT WEARY OF HITHER ŒDIPAL SNAKES VPON HITHER ŒDIPAL FLYING MACHINE

[Mr. Ron]

What In The!?

[1338 h4x0r]

What In The!?

"I have had it with all these mother****in snakes on this mother****in plane!"

[Dr Hooch]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Saitis.barbipes.male.waving.jpg

[totah]

I count seven legs and only four eyes. The **** is that thing?! I won't sleep well tonight, thanks to you.

Oh yeah, are you an anarkyist yet?

I rewrote Hobo's Lullaby by Woody Guthrie. My version is better.

[totah]

totah how many times space programs are vital for the continuation of the human race as we know it

Only after we make sure we have a healthy population within an anarchist society to settle space, OBVIOUSLY. Otherwise the galaxy will be populated by fat rich Russians with bad teeth and a brown sprayed-on comb-over.

"I have had it with all these mother****in snakes on this mother****in plane!"

The last page was funny. Holocaust funny.


www.questionablecontent.net

OMFG she kissed him! I knew it was gonna happen but didn't expect it so soon. Hawt.

[Dr Hooch]

I count seven legs and only four eyes. The **** is that thing?! I won't sleep well tonight, thanks to you.

Oh yeah, are you an anarkyist yet?

nah, still just antipathic.

I rewrote Hobo's Lullaby by Woody Guthrie. My version is better.

"this machine kills fascists








you do not"

Only after we make sure we have a healthy population within an anarchist society to settle space, OBVIOUSLY. Otherwise the galaxy will be populated by fat rich Russians with bad teeth and a brown sprayed-on comb-over.


The scientists will quietly sort this out themselves without telling the private sector.

It'll be fine.

www.questionablecontent.net

OMFG she kissed him! I knew it was gonna happen but didn't expect it so soon. Hawt.


It was pretty inevitable

I WONDER IF SHE IS GOING TO SEX HIM GOOD

[pedro durruti]

I have to read like 300 pages for sociology this week because I've been sleeping in until 3 pm every day this past week

[McP3000]

I have to read like 300 pages for sociology this week because I've been sleeping in until 3 pm every day this past week
I dont see how bad sleeping habits affects how much you read.

You can just read before you go to bed...like all normal college students...

[Eliminator]

....i agree....

[pedro durruti]

It means that I've been completely neglecting class and everything that goes with it

[McP3000]

It means that I've been completely neglecting class and everything that goes with it
Yeah, i do that when i come home from school and go to bed on time and wake up on time.

again, what's your point

[Eliminator]

pedro durruti im gonna argue with you brb

[pedro durruti]

My point is that I've got a ****load of reading to do

[Eliminator]

um so whats your point

[pedro durruti]

That depends where you're looking

[Eliminator]

again, what's your point

[pedro durruti]

Yellow

[Eliminator]

i am satisfied with this answer.

[pedro durruti]

I hate typing out prostitution cause it's got SO MANY T'S in it

[McP3000]

I hate typing out prostitution cause it's got SO MANY T'S in it
you lazy whore you

[Dr Hooch]

quick someone start prosiuion.com we'll be one handed typer's favourite site

[totah]

That's a good idea.

And finally, someone puts it down in simple understandable comic form:

http://www.xkcd.com/385/

Modern Western sexism.

[pedro durruti]

Eran is a ham who likes to spam and go bam bam BAM

[ringworm]

It means that I've been completely neglecting class and everything that goes with it
sociology is an easy class to neglect

that was one of the most absolute bullshit classes I have EVER had to sit (sleep) through. The instructor was always furious because I would still get high test scores even though I mocked the curriculum.

[Against Miik!]

I haven't been to sociology in like 2 weeks. I'm gonna go today and rip on the prof for teaching a worthless class.

[monkeysonmars.]

i did a double sociology unit at the start of this semester and it was by far the easiest thing i've done at uni.

[Zoroaster]

Who in here would like to see me come back as an active member of these forums? I decided to stop frequenting the place when it turned all leftist, but there's something strange and compelling about these forums that makes me want to return. But only if there's demand for my brilliant analysis.

[Against Miik!]

Admit it, I'm the strange and compelling part of these forums. It must be, because I'm the only non-leftist.

[Zoroaster]

Oh, and just so you know, anyone that does soft social sciences, like sociology, is a dead-beat in my book. There is no added value to society of studying anthropology, history, political science, sociology, etc. Do something useful instead. Like computer science, or engineering. Or finance.

I mean, I'm currently working at the best bulge bracket bank in the world and pulling six-figure sums only as a first year analyst. Life doesn't get any better than that. Meanwhile, the few friends I have that chose to immerse themselves in social sciences are toiling in think tanks and wasteful NGOs. Spare the world from you idealism and make a substantive contribution to the real world. Otherwise be prepared to take this kind of crap from upstanding citizens such as myself.

[monkeysonmars.]

cool

[Mr. Ron]

Lol

[Zoroaster]

Admit it, I'm the strange and compelling part of these forums. It must be, because I'm the only non-leftist.

But are you a careerist? If not, you're a leftist. Allow me to elaborate.

Each and every individual is born with a certain potential. The purpose of life is to live as close to the limit of your potential as possible. In short, you don't want to impose constraints on yourself and in so doing obtain this optimal state. Now, who imposes constraints on you? For one, the people you surround yourself with. So start living life with the sole intention of making money. Because money is the best gauge of success. The more money you make, the more important you are to society. The more important you are to society, the closer you live to the limit of your potential.

[Zoroaster]

cool

I interpret your monosyllabic response as an admission of failure. Hopefully you'll convert to my political ideology and world-view. Namely, you will start worshipping the virtue of making money and adding value to society. Sociology doesn't add value. Social sciences don't add value. Engineers add value. People in finance add value. They push frontiers and in their capacity as trailblazers they make a tidy sum of money. And it is the very size of this sum that measures your human worth.

[Mr. Ron]

LOL

[Against Miik!]

Well, I can't tell if you are joking or not, but anyways...

How can you use a completely arbitrary construct such as money to determine how valuable your life is?

[ringworm]

I haven't been to sociology in like 2 weeks. I'm gonna go today and rip on the prof for teaching a worthless class.
it was the absolute low point of my day to walk into a class that felt like Common Sense 101, but with a fancy label and expensive book to buy.

I always felt like it was a class meant for "special kids" or maybe early HS or as an elective, but hardly college level and certainly not a required course

[monkeysonmars.]

I interpret your monosyllabic response as an admission of failure. Hopefully you'll convert to my political ideology and world-view. Namely, you will start worshipping the virtue of making money and adding value to society. Sociology doesn't add value. Social sciences don't add value. Engineers add value. People in finance add value. They push frontiers and in their capacity as trailblazers they make a tidy sum of money. And it is the very size of this sum that measures your human worth.

dude you're not a traiblazer you work at a bank lol.

[Mr. Ron]

I Count Money


Bow To My Success.

[monkeysonmars.]

it was the absolute low point of my day to walk into a class that felt like Common Sense 101, but with a fancy label and expensive book to buy.

I always felt like it was a class meant for "special kids" or maybe early HS or as an elective, but hardly college level and certainly not a required course

required course is harsh, i made the mistake of putting down 'ANY' under options for last semester which is how i got stuck with it.

[Against Miik!]

it was the absolute low point of my day to walk into a class that felt like Common Sense 101, but with a fancy label and expensive book to buy.

I always felt like it was a class meant for "special kids" or maybe early HS or as an elective, but hardly college level and certainly not a required course

I hate it because it is common sense, but they use certain vocabulary for common sense themes. Like yeah, I know what goes on in society, I live in it, but I actually have to study these dumb terms.

[Zoroaster]

dude you're not a traiblazer you work at a bank lol.

I'm a trailblazer. And to be specific, I don't work at any old bank. I work at the top investment bank on the Street. And what's more, my job is really quite meaningful. I work on a so-called proprietary trading desk for this bank's in-house hedge fund. Basically, I buy and sell fixed-income instruments using the bank's money. Or in different terms, I allocate money to profitable ventures and take from loss-making ventures. I am a de facto price-maker. Without me, the financial system would, as Yeates so poetically put it, "fall apart."

[Zoroaster]

I Count Money


Bow To My Success.

I'm not a teller. Don't offend me. Those people are trash. If you're not making more than one million a year before you're thirty, well, then you're trash. Tellers are trash.

[Mr. Ron]

I'm a trailblazer. And to be specific, I don't work at any old bank. I work at the top investment bank on the Street. And what's more, my job is really quite meaningful. I work on a so-called proprietary trading desk for this bank's in-house hedge fund. Basically, I buy and sell fixed-income instruments using the bank's money. Or in different terms, I allocate money to profitable ventures and take from loss-making ventures. I am a de facto price-maker. Without me, the financial system would, as Yeates so poetically put it, "fall apart."

I make bagels am i a success

[Against Miik!]

Well actually before 1913 the banking system as we know it today didn't even really exist and people got along pretty well for quite a long time before that so...ok.

[Mr. Ron]

I'm not a teller. Don't offend me. Those people are trash. If you're not making more than one million a year before you're thirty, well, then you're trash. Tellers are trash.


YAHHH TRICK YAAHH

[monkeysonmars.]

omg what happens when you are ill??

[Mr. Ron]

omg what happens when you are ill??

Dude liek, reaily right, it all melts away

[big80smullet]

GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE
GIT OUT MAH FACE

[Zoroaster]

Well actually before 1913 the banking system as we know it today didn't even really exist and people got along pretty well for quite a long time before that so...ok.

Don't give me that garbage. Someone is listening way too much to Ron Paul these days. The FED plays an extremely important role in ensuring there is liquidity available to market players. Without a growing monetary base, money would be locked-up in illiquid assets and the probability of a misallocation of capital would rise commensurately.

Don't get me wrong, I have many qualms about the role the FED is playing during these turbulent times. A lot of its policy is distortionary through various inflationary media. And yet without its mandate, we would not see the growth figures we've seen these last decades.

[big80smullet]

illiquid

is that even a word? You mean like solid or summit right?

[Mr. Ron]

is that even a word? You mean like solid or summit right?

Do not question the overlord of the cosmos, please.

[Against Miik!]

The growth numbers were a bit inflated, non pun intended. Things are evening out now, and we see not only countries like China and India putting us to shame in terms of economic growth, but even some South American countries overtaking us in terms of growth. Obviously it will take a while for anyone to overtake us in GDP, but I'd rather be growing that stagnant.

Also, wherever this growth is, it's not reaching the common citizens. Today, your average working is making less than he did thirty years ago, adjusted for inflation.

[ringworm]

I'm not a teller. Don't offend me. Those people are trash. If you're not making more than one million a year before you're thirty, well, then you're trash. Tellers are trash.
lol, you're just the garbage can that the trash goes in with that attitude :p

[big80smullet]

Do not question the overlord of the cosmos, please.

Xenu?

[Against Miik!]

Whats it w/ you and Xenu?

Commie

[Dave de Sylvia]

we see not only countries like China and India putting us to shame in terms of economic growth, but even some South American countries overtaking us in terms of growth.
Is that surprising? They're growing from a base where their economies were a minute fraction of America's, and the West's in general. China might never catch up with the US in terms of per capita standard of living.

[Against Miik!]

Is that surprising? They're growing from a base where their economies were a minute fraction of America's, and the West's in general. China might never catch up with the US in terms of per capita standard of living.

I'm not saying it's surprising. It just further shows how bad the U.S. economy is doing, in a larger sense. Clearly it's possible to do well in the world today, because some countries are doing it. Although again, I guess that always happens, some countries flourish, others not so much.

But that takes away from my point. I shouldn't have said that.

[Dave de Sylvia]

The US economy isn't doing badly, I don't know where you've gained this impression. It's weakened in relation to Europe and, to a point, the developing world, but that's down to the successes of those nations not America's failings.

[Against Miik!]

I guess thats questionable.

[Zoroaster]

is that even a word? You mean like solid or summit right?

Liquidity is arguably the most commonly used term in finance. It refers to the amount of volumes to acquire or sell assets sloshing around the system at any given point in time. If the FED were to suddenly stop printing money, liquidity would evaporate instantaneously and the transfer of assets between different parties collapse unto itself. This would be truly catastrophic.

Is that surprising? They're growing from a base where their economies were a minute fraction of America's, and the West's in general. China might never catch up with the US in terms of per capita standard of living.

Exactly. Take a street beggar and his source of income. At any point in time he will probably hold anywhere between $1-5 dollars in cash. If a person walking past gives him an additional $5 (e.g. foreign aid), his income all of a sudden shoots up by 100%. Same thing applies to the so-called "emerging markets" Against Milk referred to earlier.

Having said that, China and India are hitting a really good, sustained growth trajectory. Still, India's share of consumption globally is equivalent to 5% of the aggregate American consumption levels. That should put things sufficiently into perspective.

I'm not saying it's surprising. It just further shows how bad the U.S. economy is doing, in a larger sense. Clearly it's possible to do well in the world today, because some countries are doing it. Although again, I guess that always happens, some countries flourish, others not so much.

The US economy is doing poorly, granted, but only from a historic perspective. It is currently facing a lot of systemic and counterparty risk which is putting the grind on credit lending. Low credit lending affects both the consumer and business man alike. The consumer have to put up more assets as collateral (and their balance sheet is already stretched pretty thin) to finance their consumption. Similar situation for the business man, only this directly feeds into capital investment. In short, consumption and investment is set to fall. This obviously impacts on GDP growth.

On a more positive note, the external trade balance is rapidly improving on the back of the favourable dollar exchange rate. Granted, inflationary pressure is building up domestically because of Bernanke's lax monetary policy and the depreciation of the dollar, but in the short-run the US can easily get out of the slump it is currently finding itself in. So, to cut a long story short, I fundamentally disagree with your assessment and think it is coloured by the rhetoric of a rather stupid Texas congressman.

[Iskandar]

Who in here would like to see me come back as an active member of these forums? I decided to stop frequenting the place when it turned all leftist, but there's something strange and compelling about these forums that makes me want to return. But only if there's demand for my brilliant analysis.I vote "nay."

[Zoroaster]

I vote "nay."

That's not very nice. I'm probably the most well-educated member of these forums.

[Reaganista]

Oh, and just so you know, anyone that does soft social sciences, like sociology, is a dead-beat in my book. There is no added value to society of studying anthropology, history, political science, sociology, etc. Do something useful instead. Like computer science, or engineering. Or finance.

I mean, I'm currently working at the best bulge bracket bank in the world and pulling six-figure sums only as a first year analyst. Life doesn't get any better than that. Meanwhile, the few friends I have that chose to immerse themselves in social sciences are toiling in think tanks and wasteful NGOs. Spare the world from you idealism and make a substantive contribution to the real world. Otherwise be prepared to take this kind of crap from upstanding citizens such as myself.
finance is parasitic

But are you a careerist? If not, you're a leftist. Allow me to elaborate.

Each and every individual is born with a certain potential. The purpose of life is to live as close to the limit of your potential as possible. In short, you don't want to impose constraints on yourself and in so doing obtain this optimal state. Now, who imposes constraints on you? For one, the people you surround yourself with. So start living life with the sole intention of making money. Because money is the best gauge of success. The more money you make, the more important you are to society. The more important you are to society, the closer you live to the limit of your potential.
yep that's me

[Zoroaster]

finance is parasitic

What do you know about finance? Saying it's parasitic is, well, true in many ways. It's also a gross simplification. I enjoy finance because it makes me money. Finance is a zero-sum game (excluding for the printing press of the central bank, of course). When I make money, someone else loses out. And I thrive on that feeling.

[Reaganista]

I know some things about finance

one of them is it's a parasite

[Zoroaster]

How old are you? I'm just curious.

[Reaganista]

22 y

[Zoroaster]

Then you should know better.

[guitrguy]

little bit pompous are we?

[Reaganista]

Then you should know better.

not really no

[Iskandar]

That's not very nice. I'm probably the most well-educated member of these forums.That's nice, but I still don't desire your continuing presence here.

[Knifeboy]

That's not very nice. I'm probably the most well-educated member of these forums.

That may well be, but you're also batsh!t insane

[Otherside]

As well as incredible pompous and disrespectful.

Nay here as well.

[guitrguy]

I vote nay.

[Dr Hooch]

Oh, and just so you know, anyone that does soft social sciences, like sociology, is a dead-beat in my book. There is no added value to society of studying anthropology, history, political science, sociology, etc. Do something useful instead. Like computer science, or engineering. Or finance.

I mean, I'm currently working at the best bulge bracket bank in the world and pulling six-figure sums only as a first year analyst. Life doesn't get any better than that. Meanwhile, the few friends I have that chose to immerse themselves in social sciences are toiling in think tanks and wasteful NGOs. Spare the world from you idealism and make a substantive contribution to the real world. Otherwise be prepared to take this kind of crap from upstanding citizens such as myself.

Look, I study physics, which is a far more 'solid' subject than economics, and i think you're an absolute cunt.

Yes, sociology is oversubscribed, but you openly admit that the sole purpose of your entire life is to swap around things that don't exist so that even more stuff that doesn't exist will be attributed to your bank on a computer.

It's not like you can withdraw the sorts of quantities these people deal in, is it? It's totally intangible and adds nothing to society, for all it takes away.

I'm not a teller. Don't offend me. Those people are trash. If you're not making more than one million a year before you're thirty, well, then you're trash. Tellers are trash.

For a man who seems to pretend to know economics, you don't seem to have thought this through.

Essentially what you have said is that everyone that doesn't work in finance is trash; including but not limited to doctors, cancer curing scientists, people who take care of sick children...

None of which you could ever hope to do.

That's not very nice. I'm probably the most well-educated member of these forums.

What, because you can spew out in a community thread what you learn in a GCSE economics class?

You're not wanted here, go brag somewhere where someone gives a ****. Wall street starbucks or something.

What do you know about finance? Saying it's parasitic is, well, true in many ways. It's also a gross simplification. I enjoy finance because it makes me money. Finance is a zero-sum game (excluding for the printing press of the central bank, of course). When I make money, someone else loses out. And I thrive on that feeling.

"The only way I can succeed in life is to make other people miserable at no risk to myself"

[ringworm]

that was some major pwnage

[Mr. Ron]

I vote yea just because we need a different nut, rather than just Steve.

[1338 h4x0r]

Oh, and just so you know, anyone that does soft social sciences, like sociology, is a dead-beat in my book. There is no added value to society of studying anthropology, history, political science, sociology, etc. Do something useful instead. Like computer science, or engineering. Or finance.

I'm a computer science student.

Honestly, you must have been thinking of IT or software engineering, because my field of study borders on becoming theology with all its useless bullpoop, unless you think studying the lambda calculus and debating about whether it's possible to prove things about programs and whether functional is better than OOP are 'careerist' topics.

There is plenty of use for historians, linguists, psychologists, etc. although I admit that I personally find CS and math the most fulfilling, and yes they are absolutely essential subjects for an industrial society.

I may be a misanthrope with serious psychological issues, but you're a heartless mother****ing prick dude. Even I wouldn't stoop that low, maybe threaten to do so to let off steam, but not actually do it. Well, if I did, I would probably have enough decency to excuse myself alone from this terrible, terrible place and not ruin anyone else's life.

Jesus...

[Reaganista]

i vote yay because he gets you guys so riled up

[Dr Hooch]

he's like what would happen if you had no sense of irony, humour or basic common decency

[monkeysonmars.]

can't get enough of that sweet, sweet antagonism

[sweboy]

I vote yay because that guy seems to be one of the biggest idiots I have encountered in a long time, and then you know there's gonna be plenty of lols.

[pedro durruti]

Yo why everyone be hatin on sociology some few pages back

[Dr Hooch]

Yo why everyone be hatin on sociology some few pages back

things you can do with a sociology degree:

join the police


teach sociology

[italic zero]

i vote yea because he's a lot more interesting than most of you guys

[pedro durruti]

things you can do with a sociology degree:

join the police


teach sociology
Now you're sounding like Zoroaster

[Iskandar]

If you don't make a million dollars before you're thirty, you're trash.

[guitrguy]

I won't be trash then. :)

[Mr. Ron]

I'm a history major. :(

[gregulus]

Natural Sciences And Mathematics, Mother****ers!!!!

[Mr. Ron]

idc wut u guyses say, histury iz impowtant

[Reaganista]

man who cares about history

[Der Übermensch]

Those who are damned to repeat it?

[Reaganista]

that saying is such ridiculous nonsense history only repeats itself if you take a retardedly unnuaced view of everything

[pedro durruti]

History repeated itself last night with me and your uncle

[thedeadwalk!]

things you can do with a sociology degree:

join the police


teach sociology
I'm surprised you didn't say social services as that is what every asks if I'm going into when I tell them I'm majoring in Sociology.

[Dr Hooch]

Now you're sounding like Zoroaster

You can do lots of things with a degree. But my list was pretty crap I have to say

I'm surprised you didn't say social services as that is what every asks if I'm going into when I tell them I'm majoring in Sociology.

How did I not think of that?

[big80smullet]

lol so this dude is saying that 99.999% of the worlds population are trash :lol: at least he has some self worth.

i say yea cause he makes me laugh

[Against Miik!]

Yeah, he's funny.

I'd much rather have more people managing my portfolio than picking up my trash. yeah, fo sho.

[Knifeboy]

i vote yea because he's a lot more interesting than most of you guys

Writing 20 paragraphs about how he gets a hard-on from money is considered being interesting?

[Chu]

I want to know why Zoroaster measures life success by monetary value.

I'd be comfortable on <$100k a year, and I'm sure there are those who are similar....

[big80smullet]

i could live on that. as long as i have a decent house mediocre japanese car and enough money to buy nice clothes and booze so i can bone hoes im not too bothered

[Chu]

Pretty much.

[big80smullet]

i could live on a fiver a week if i could root bitches on it

[Hababi]

I want to know why Zoroaster measures life success by monetary value.

I'd be comfortable on <$100k a year, and I'm sure there are those who are similar....

Considering my dad makes $25K a year, <$100K eg $80K sounds quite good.

And I vote yay to keeping zoroaster around. He makes things considerably more interesting.

[Against Miik!]

Well I go to school right now. The school essentially provides me with a job (being a student I guess), food, and shelter. It's a big school, but a well set up campus, so I can walk everywhere. For this, I pay about 15k a year. Beyond those basic things, I have my personal possessions. I don't get new stuff very often, but all of it total might add up to 2k. beyond that, I probably spend 40$ a weekend of various activities, but not every weekend. Lets say 30 weekends out of the year. Thats 1200$. So really, after I have all my personal possessions, which isn't really even in my yearly expenditures anymore, I spend about 16,200$ a year. And with that, I am living quite comfortably.

And that 15,000$ goes to room and board, of which the price is seriously inflated. Next year, when I have my own condo, which won't be a dump either, my rent will be less and I can guarantee I will spend less on food. So really, we can probably knock that number down to 15,000$.

Granted, I don't have a family to feed or anything. But still, the point remains.

[Knifeboy]

Even with a family to feed, a house, and two cars.. I couldn't imagine needing more than 200k a year... And that would be more than enough

[Against Miik!]

200k a year in the United States would be considered doing quite well. Pretty much anything in 6 figures would make you "upper class". Not mega rich, but at least top 5th. I'm pretty sure the middle fifth average income is around $45,000.

[ringworm]

dang 200k a year?

I could work 2 years then retire, at least where i live, and have everything paid off, then go get a part time job at Lowes for petty cash to spend during my daily round of golf or fishing trips

[big80smullet]

lol my parents combined make about 400k a year but theres 8 in my family but they are pretty well off. i would like to make similar amounts of money but it most likely wont happen. I dont consider them successful because they make that much money though they are successful because they raise a good family and contribute well to society (they are both doctors)

[Knifeboy]

dang 200k a year?


I originally wrote 100k, but I actually think I could manage to waste 100k a year away if I reeally wanted to ;)

[guitrguy]

I would probably buy San Marino, if I was rich.

[big80smullet]

why would you want such a small shitty country. Id buy belarus. at least it has slavic beauties and some coal reserves. It'd go cheap as well cause its a fixer upper

[guitrguy]

I would cut out army expenses because I can rely on Spain to cover my ***. I would have Spanish beauties.

[ringworm]

New Real Time vid links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WS3lIINei0&feature=related

[McP3000]

lol my parents combined make about 400k a year but theres 8 in my family but they are pretty well off. i would like to make similar amounts of money but it most likely wont happen. I dont consider them successful because they make that much money though they are successful because they raise a good family and contribute well to society (they are both doctors)
8 children?

damn...your mom's vagoo must be large by now

[Tyr]

I would cut out army expenses because I can rely on Spain to cover my ***. I would have Spanish beauties.

Don't you mean Italy?

[guitrguy]

Don't you mean Italy?

I guess, what is the small country in Spain? I guess I got the names confused.

[Dr Hooch]

By british standards one could live extremely comfortably on £100k a year with a house wife and 2 kids


the most i could ever hope to learn if i stayed in university to lecture/research physics is like half that and that would be for a very senior position

[Knifeboy]

The only reason I'd wanna earn 1 mill a year, would be so I could afford the treatment when they figure out how to stop cells from aging

[Tyr]

I guess, what is the small country in Spain? I guess I got the names confused.

Andorra. In the Pyrenees between Spain and France. Those micro states hardly count as countries anyway.

[guitrguy]

Andorra. In the Pyrenees between Spain and France. Those micro states hardly count as countries anyway.

I know, Thats why I would buy one.

[Mr. Ron]

Yeah I expect to make like, 34-40 K a year when I teach highschool.

:(


Although I plan to take courses to teach in a college either as an adjunct or a full time.

[guitrguy]

You would have to get a Masters degree.

[Mr. Ron]

You would have to get a Masters degree.

Yeah I'm definitely going for that, my sister is in the process of getting hers.

[CarnageFairy]

I ain't gonna be making a lot of money any time soon, if ever. I like that though, it'll keep me from getting too....comfortable.

Though I suppose I would like to someday have enough money to design a nice house for myself.

Oh and I hope zoro stays, his posts always give me a tingly feeling.

[McP3000]

I ain't gonna be making a lot of money any time soon, if ever. I like that though, it'll keep me from getting too....comfortable.

Though I suppose I would like to someday have enough money to design a nice house for myself.

Oh and I hope zoro stays, his posts always give me a tingly feeling.
why wouldn't you want to make a lot of money?

it would make paying for CDs and Guitars a lot easier

[1338 h4x0r]

why would you want such a small shitty country. Id buy belarus. at least it has slavic beauties and some coal reserves. It'd go cheap as well cause its a fixer upper

Slavic biatches ftw

Fallout-mutated biatches ftl

[CarnageFairy]

why wouldn't you want to make a lot of money?

Because I've haven't yet been able to get past the stage in my life where I practice my own form of "suburban asceticism". :thumb::thumb:

But furreal, I don't know. It (or a lack thereof, I guess) caused a lot of familial strife when I was younger. Instead of deciding to make a lot of money like most poor people I guess I just ended up with a distaste for the stuff.

I think it also helps that I don't plan on supporting anyone else but myself for a long while.

But replace Cd's and guitars with lenses and film and you may have snagged me...

[Dr Hooch]

The only reason I'd wanna earn 1 mill a year, would be so I could afford the treatment when they figure out how to stop cells from aging

I wouldn't advise it

[Knifeboy]

but.., but... I want to live forever :upset:

[Iskandar]

Slavic biatches ftw

Fallout-mutated biatches ftl
You're thinking of Ukraine, not Belarus. Unless there was some Chernobyl-scale nuclear disaster in Belarus that I haven't heard about.