RE: The worst
From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of Nick Arnett Sent: Monday, January 04, 2010 3:48 PM To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion Subject: The worst My friends I hate to write this. Been putting it off for a while. My younger sister, Lesley, the youngest of the four of us, mother of my five-year-old niece, Sarah, could not fight off the sepsis that attacked her body. Lesley died this morning. I have never hurt so much. Nick My most heartfelt condolences to you, Nick. Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: The wikipedia trolls may win again (III) :-/
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of David Hobby Sent: Tuesday, December 29, 2009 2:42 PM To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion Subject: Re: The wikipedia trolls may win again (III) :-/ ... It seems like they are running a seek-and-destroy against every Brin stuff in wikipedia. After Alvin, the trolls will delete Streaker. The Troll is targeting for deletion: Gubru, G'Kek, EarthClan, Tymbrimi, Streaker (David Brin), Jophur, and Alvin Hph-wayuo. It must be a Brin-hater. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php? title=Special:Contributionslimit=50target=Abductive So the user is Abductive, and he seems to spend a lot of time proposing articles for deletion. All except Streaker now just have notability tags, which seem mild enough to leave. But it could well be the first step in a campaign. He seems to not have status much higher than the rest of us editors, so the articles won't be deleted without due process. If we want the articles to stay up on Wikipedia, the best defense is references to them in books not written by David Brin. Does anybody know any? ---David ___ Jumping in here without reading the whole thread (bad form, I know, but I have no time to even be reading what I've read and replying *now*), but an amazon.com search might turn something up. It's given me stupid references to things inside books when I've been looking for just one thing in particular, so, at least in theory, that should work now. Julia and no, I don't have time to do the searches myself any time this week ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: Again, The Future
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of Ronn! Blankenship Sent: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 5:32 PM To: Recipient list suppressed: Subject: Again, The Future 1. http://i39.tinypic.com/24w7ed0.jpg 2. http://comics.com/the_buckets/2009-11-24/ And one response: http://comics.com/brevity/2009-11-24/ . . . ronn! :) ___ I IM'ed those links to my friend who is in another room in my house. The IM'ing in the same house was freaky for her. :) Still waiting for her reaction to the last one Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: How to tell if a star has planets?
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of Ronn! Blankenship Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 8:55 AM To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion Subject: Re: How to tell if a star has planets? At 04:39 AM Thursday 11/12/2009, Alberto Monteiro wrote: David Hobby asked: Whatever happened to good old snake oil? Became biodiesel. Alberto Monteiro How many snakes do you have to squeeze to get a gallon? . . . ronn! :) _ Depends on the snakes. A little grass snake isn't going to yield much. A 9' rattler, on the other hand, if you can squeeze it hard enough without getting bit, will give you more. Julia who declined to take part in what she perceived was the torturing of the rattlesnakes from Taylor during the premiere weekend of Snakes on a Plane at the Alamo Drafthouse (this was at the Village location), and did *not* reach out to touch the one being brought up the aisle on her side (and I think that one was only about 5' long) ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: The thread about the thread Re: DeLong on health insurance reform
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of David Hobby Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2009 7:48 PM To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion Subject: Re: The thread about the thread Re: DeLong on health insurance reform I think in both cases, it's sort of a deferred maintenance problem. When you finally have time, there's a BIG backlog to deal with. ---David ___ Yes. And in our case, it was compounded by our daughter refusing to sleep in the room she shared with her twin brother, starting about 5 weeks before school started. The project to get the spare room fixed up to be a bedroom for a 6-year-old took a big chunk of time, and that wasn't quite finished until about 4 weeks later, partly because there were some hard deadlines for 2 other projects in the meantime. :P I'm thinking about what has to be done in the breakfast nook at this point, and figuring that maybe I'll work on it for an hour tomorrow, or maybe I won't. (I think that 2-3 hours will have it *done*, but the first hour is going to be a bear.) Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: The thread about the thread Re: DeLong on health insurance reform
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of Jo Anne Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 11:32 PM To: brin-l@mccmedia.com Subject: The thread about the thread Re: DeLong on health insurance reform David wrote: Hi. There I was, doing my bit to produce list traffic. Sorry... No apologies needed. I just remember so well person after person taking on JDG trying to talk about different stuff (abortion, death penalty, politics). While I think Dan talked the longest and the hardest, I came to feel the guy just got off on fanning flames of dissention. Sort of like what's going on now, IMO. And Yeah, the women probably are hiding. Just for the record, I wasn't hiding, I was buried in Things That Had To Be Done. Very seriously buried. And am now just reading this. (And there's another 3 or 4 Things That Have To Be Done in the next week or so that I'm neglecting right now in favor of trying to get somewhat caught up on this and one other mailing list that I'm usually totally on top of, to the point where my first post *there* in about 10 days got me a welcome back! from someone who'd apparently missed my posting.) It's amazing what you find needs doing when you finally have all your kids in school for a full day for the first time ever. I might have most of it done by the time school gets out in early June! Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: Cloud Computing Smears (Was: Google Wave)
Er. In that sort of a situation, I myself would set up a RAID for storing the data, *much* less chance for losing it. I'd just do that anyway. In fact, the computer that's still in a box and is destined to replace the one I'm using right now has a RAID, because I seem to have a knack for catastrophically losing hard drives that baffles my husband entirely. (He has more problems with his PDAs than I do, so I guess there's *some* sort of balance) I think I've lost 2 or 3 in the past 6 years, and any data that wasn't backed up, which is kind of rough for an information junkie. For *that* sort of application, I'd go with a decent number of disks in the array for any one set of data. My own problem with cloud computing is, if the magical set of wires between me and my data has a glitch, I can't get to my data, and we end up with Grumpy Julia, which is not pleasant for anyone directly involved. (Jo Anne -- a RAID is a Redundant Array of Independent Disks, where the data is stored on multiple disks and checked for accuracy on some regular basis. If one drive goes down, either the data should be duplicated somewhere, or there should be enough information stored on another disk or disks to reconstruct what was lost. Off-site backup is still recommended for things like fire, floods and tornadoes, and don't anyone laugh about the tornadoes, m'kay?) Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: Brin: On 'Incomprehesibility'
_ From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of medieva...@aol.com Sent: Saturday, August 01, 2009 8:31 PM To: brin-l@mccmedia.com Subject: Re: Brin: On 'Incomprehesibility' 7- It is much easier to read the back of a video box than the pages of that tiny booklet--if there even is one. Vilyehm _ Yes! And, most VHS tapes had the runtime in quite readable letters *on the casing of the tape*. Good luck reading runtime on the back of a DVD case. (I do it regularly, to figure out what is and is not too long to try to watch before bedtime, and I really need to sit down with some sticky notes, pull out each paper information sleeve, put a sticky note with runtime in minutes and hours:minutes -- and that's a ridiculous amount of work there!) Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: Google Operating System
-Original Message- From: brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com [mailto:brin-l-boun...@mccmedia.com] On Behalf Of John Williams Sent: Thursday, July 09, 2009 11:48 PM To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion Subject: Re: Google Operating System On Thu, Jul 9, 2009 at 9:11 PM, Doug Pensingerbrig...@zo.com wrote: I'd estimate the efficiency of my gmail filter is 99% or better. That is a particularly uninformative statistic. Much more interesting would be two figures: probability of false positives ( number of real marked as spam / number of real), and probability of false negatives (number spam passed as real / number of spam). Reply: I get no more than 1 in 500 false positives. I get no more than 1 in 1000 false negatives. It was more than that early on in my use of Gmail, I got one account in 2004, IIRC, and another in 2007. The more recent one, most of the false positives were from one mailing list which is now defunct (as it has been replaced with a system that works better for most of the people involved than that mailing list ever did). YMMV. Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Uplift Universe question....
On Fri, 8 May 2009, medieva...@aol.com wrote: In a message dated 5/8/2009 11:12:20 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time, dml...@gmail.com writes: On May 8, 2009, at 8:22 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: According to Wikipedia (a reliable source for over 200 years, according to Wikipedia): I have been trying to find the origin of that particular piece of Wikipedia-mockery (that, according to Wikipedia itself, Wikipedia has been around for X00 years) for some time -- does anybody know where it came from? Dave Macbeth. Something Wikipedia this way comes. Vilyehm So, it wasn't actually *reliable* for some of the *first* 200 years? Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Ohhhhh!
On Thu, 7 May 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: http://comics.com/eric_allie/2009-05-07/ I like Sidney Harris's original a lot better I think he would have done a better job of drawing Obama, as well. Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Death Note [was: Weekly Chat Reminder]
On Thu, 23 Apr 2009, Alberto Vieira Ferreira Monteiro wrote: But here it's not broadcast on normal channels, but on the cable-channel Animax (aka The Hentai Channel :-) ) The Hentai Channel? I have a friend who would be *extremely* interested in that Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Cool dolphin behavior
Dolphins blowing bubble rings and playing with them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuVgXJ55G6Y Video from SeaWorld in Orlando. 3:25 Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Quiet
On Wed, 18 Mar 2009, William T Goodall wrote: since the Taliban imposed censorship on the list. Stone me Maru I think it's more likely that folks just haven't had much to say, or the opportunity to say it. I've had my ass kicked by allergies. Then I started taking Zyrtec, and as long as I get enough tea early enough in the day, I'm fine. I haven't been getting enough tea early enough in the day since Monday. (Maybe I ought to do something about that now, instead of writing e-mails) Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: [Brin-l] Admin page for Brin-L
On Thu, 19 Feb 2009, Charlie Bell wrote: On 18/02/2009, at 11:18 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: I found that the admin page for Brin-L, where you can make changes to your subscription(s), customize, etc., is not where I thought it was. Also, posting to the br...@nickarnett.net thing doesnae work yet. So, make it work. Or I start a rebellion. Ner. :-p Charlie. Bug Notice Maru So, that's really bugging you, eh? Julia ___ http://mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: SCOUTED: XKCD on Space Elevators
On Tue, 3 Feb 2009, Dave Land wrote: Folks, You know it's been too long since you've wasted an hour at XKCD, so get on over there and see his take on Space Elevators (and the state of humor in America today). http://www.xkcd.com/536/ Dave Yes, it has been a few days. And, congratulations on being the first non-Bruce Brineller to poke me to catch up on xkcd in a long time! :D Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My robot is more popular than I am
On Fri, 30 Jan 2009, Charlie Bell wrote: On 30/01/2009, at 8:08 AM, Dave Land wrote: On Jan 29, 2009, at 10:01 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: Tweetsnet now has more Twitter followers than I do. Competition between people writing robots and people detecting robots is leading to smarter software, I hope. As long as it's not more interesting than you are. I have a rock that's more interesting than Nick is. Charlie. It Does Happen To Be A Fossil Ammonite, If That Counts For Anything Maru I think Nick is more interesting than *my* fossil ammonites. Then again, mine are wrapped with a bit of wire and stuck on loops to be earrings. (They're too heavy for my ears to be happy about them, though, so I don't wear them.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Zombies in Austin
On Thu, 29 Jan 2009, Mauro Diotallevi wrote: http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/Road_signs_warn_of_zombies http://austinist.com/2009/01/25/snapshots_zombie_defense_league_co-.php Picture and a video Video that may start itself: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dustinc/3227981714/ The videos don't show the upper right corner of the sign very well, but at the first link, they tell you just what the sign says. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Scouted: Would you like some mercury with your Coke?
On Tue, 27 Jan 2009, Jim Sharkey wrote: http://www.ehjournal.net/content/8/1/2 According to this recent study, the process used to create some high fructose corn syrups adds at least trace amounts of mercury to the end product. As if there weren't already enough reasons to avoid it. Jim Dublin Dr. Pepper rules Maru Damn straight it does! (And I can get Coca-cola bottled in Mexico, also made with cane sugar. I'm preferring the Dublin Dr. Pepper more each month, though, and the case of Mexican Coke I bought early in December may very well last me into March or April. Just need to get to Central Market more often for the DDP) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: DDP (was Re: Scouted: Would you like some mercury with your Coke?)
On Tue, 27 Jan 2009, Jim Sharkey wrote: Bruce wrote: Julia wrote: Jim Dublin Dr. Pepper rules Maru Damn straight it does! I became a convert to DDP some years ago Fun fact: For our anniversary a couple of years ago I made my wife get me a couple of cases of DDP. They cost more to ship than to buy. :-p Jim Worth it Maru Well, if I'm going to Jim's neck of the woods, I know what to try to pack to bring him! Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Tweetsnet beta
On Sat, 24 Jan 2009, Nick Arnett wrote: On Sat, Jan 24, 2009 at 6:36 AM, Rceeberger rceeber...@comcast.net wrote: Good work Nick! That is the kind of site that could get a surprising amount of traffic. Thanks! We'll see... not a huge number of visitors yet, but I thought Friday evening would be a good time to get an announcement out, since it shouldn't gain traffic too fast. It's on a hosted server and I want to be able to keep an eye on the resources it consumes, since the hosting company limits bandwidth and CPU cycles. I guess I'm most curious to see what people end up using it for. What are people talking about on Twitter is not something I imagine will have any staying power - too broad. It might be a way for people to discover people they want to follow on Twitter. I'm aiming at identifying communities of shared interest and perhaps creating feeds for each of them. Do you want me to put the word out? I could do that in 3 different places, at least. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: The Hunt For Goldilocks
On Thu, 22 Jan 2009, xponentrob wrote: - Original Message - From: Charlie Bell char...@culturelist.org To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion brin-l@mccmedia.com Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2009 6:53 PM Subject: Re: The Hunt For Goldilocks Hey Rob - if you're going to post links to articles, can you at least include a paragraph or so of each linked article to show what's interesting about it and maybe explain why I'd bother clicking it. I'm sure I'm not alone in being very reluctant to click naked links. Likewise, it's normally not necessary to post an entire article from elsewhere here... A little nudity never hurt anybody. Well, if you're not an albino and out during daylight hours, maybe (I've never been hurt by nudity as long as there have been appropriate amounts of sunscreen involved. The last thing I want to do is burn my nipples.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: The Hunt For Goldilocks
On Fri, 23 Jan 2009, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Jan 23, 2009, at 10:33 AM, Julia Thompson wrote: On Thu, 22 Jan 2009, xponentrob wrote: - Original Message - From: Charlie Bell char...@culturelist.org To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion brin-l@mccmedia.com Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2009 6:53 PM Subject: Re: The Hunt For Goldilocks Hey Rob - if you're going to post links to articles, can you at least include a paragraph or so of each linked article to show what's interesting about it and maybe explain why I'd bother clicking it. I'm sure I'm not alone in being very reluctant to click naked links. Likewise, it's normally not necessary to post an entire article from elsewhere here... A little nudity never hurt anybody. Well, if you're not an albino and out during daylight hours, maybe (I've never been hurt by nudity as long as there have been appropriate amounts of sunscreen involved. The last thing I want to do is burn my nipples.) Julia I have it on reliable authority that that is a *bad* place for a sunburn, for a number of reasons. :S I'm just glad not to be in the position of reliable authority for that. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Br!n: Congratulations! Today you get rid of... of... what's hisname?
On Wed, 21 Jan 2009, Pat Mathews wrote: I wrote a filk song entitled The Eagles picked up the ring about the real end of LOTR. They flew it back to the Pentagon will publish here on request. Consider this to be a request. :) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Twitter user for Brin-L
On Mon, 19 Jan 2009, Nick Arnett wrote: On Mon, Jan 19, 2009 at 5:29 PM, Alberto Vieira Ferreira Monteiro albm...@centroin.com.br wrote: Nick Arnett wrote: I've created a Twitter user, KillerBs, associated with the list. (...) I have no fidea of what is a Twitter. I guess it's a kind of robot, and, in my wish list, a robot that I would like to see is one that grabs the messages in Brin's blog and reposts here. Hmmm... That wouldn't be very hard to whip up, but I think I'd want to ask his permission, since that could easily be a copyright infringement otherwise. Anybody else want that? How about summaries, with links back to his blog? Well, what comes through on the atom.xml feed for his blog is the whole post -- can you just grab that? It's already out there for the grabbing. It's out there on LiveJournal, for example. http://davidbrin.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default or http://davidbrin.blogspot.com/atom.xml Just set up something to grab the feed and post it automatically. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Metric Conversions
On Sat, 10 Jan 2009, David Hobby wrote:
Back to what I was saying about Wikipedia, the
article there at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_number
starts like this:
In mathematics, a natural number (also called counting number) can
mean either an element of the set {1, 2, 3, ...} (the positive
integers) or an element of the set {0, 1, 2, 3, ...} (the
non-negative integers). The latter is especially preferred in
mathematical logic, set theory, and computer science.
I often teach upper division college Math courses that
are just at the cusp between the two definitions, and
make a point of stating the definition of the natural
numbers. (Whatever it says in the text, of course!)
---David
Positive integers, Maru
Positive, or nonnegative? That is the question
Julia
___
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Re: Metric Conversions
On Thu, 8 Jan 2009, Rceeberger wrote: http://xkcd.com/526/ xponent Spit Goes Cunk Maru rob Is that cunk or clink? Looks like clink to me. http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e57/davemathew76/megaflicks.jpg for a similar situation. (Or just go to Google Images and type in, they should have used a different font.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Metric Conversions
On Thu, 8 Jan 2009, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Jan 8, 2009, at 5:34 PM, Rceeberger wrote: http://xkcd.com/526/ xponent Spit Goes Cunk Maru rob Related: I've invented the worst mixed drink ever. Randall usually doesn't squick me out. Usually. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Physicists offer foundation for uprooting a hallowed principle of physics
On Mon, 5 Jan 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 10:45 PM Monday 1/5/2009, Julia Thompson wrote: On Mon, 5 Jan 2009, Rceeberger wrote: http://www.physorg.com/news150388964.html An apple and an anti-apple might not fall at the same rate. xponent But A Mac And An Anti-Apple 2E Do Maru rob Wow, it's almost 11PM, and I was almost despairing of encountering a good reason not to have liquids at the computer today! Congratulations, Rob! Julia I keep worrying about what a good spew would do to this new flat-screen monitor: I'm not sure having a spray bottle of Windex and a roll of paper towels by the screen is the best thing anymore . . . or am I being unnecessarily paranoid? I don't think Windex is the way to go with a flat-screen monitor. I asked in May about that and got some good answers, I can go back and try to find those for you, if you'd like me to. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Scouted: U.S. to collapse in next two years?
On Tue, 6 Jan 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 12:09 AM Tuesday 1/6/2009, xponentrob wrote: xponent Watt?The Current News Is Shocking Mr Volta! Maru rob Ohm, that's revolting. Sigh. You just can't resist jumping into these pun threads, can you? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Physicists offer foundation for uprooting a hallowed principle of physics
On Mon, 5 Jan 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: I keep worrying about what a good spew would do to this new flat-screen monitor: I'm not sure having a spray bottle of Windex and a roll of paper towels by the screen is the best thing anymore . . . or am I being unnecessarily paranoid? Lint-free cloth, NOT paper towels; spray one cloth with water or isopropyl alcohol, use that to clean, and follow with a dry cloth. No, you're not being paranoid; I was specifically told *not* to use paper towels when I asked. (And it sounds like Windex isn't quite the thing, either.) A dilute vinegar solution will also work. Don't ever spray anything directly onto the screen of a flatscreen monitor. And don't press or try to scrub, because you can damage pixels or scratch the surface of the monitor that way. IME, there are a *lot* of things that will come clean with sufficient gentle rubbing with something damp, but you need to be patient with everything. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Cleaning flat screens, wuz Re: Physicists offer foundation for uprooting a hallowed principle of physics
On Tue, 6 Jan 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Thx! When reading this list one must always be prepared for major spewage . . . Guess I Could Just Drape A Plastic Bag Over It Maru Dude. Just don't drink anything at the computer. That's what I've been doing for years. Between this list and a certain other one, I probably would have fried 3 monitors by now if I hadn't set that policy. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Cleaning flat screens, wuz Re: Physicists offer foundation for uprooting a hallowed principle of physics
On Tue, 6 Jan 2009, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 03:14 PM Tuesday 1/6/2009, Euan Ritchie wrote: Lint-free cloth, NOT paper towels; spray one cloth with water or isopropyl alcohol, 70% (rubbing alcohol) or 91% (sold for sterilizing needles, etc.) 2-PrOH? Or custom strength (more dilute??)? More dilute. use that to clean, and follow with a dry cloth. For simple things like finger smudges and dust a clean micro-fibre cloth does well. That's what I've been using. For worse I got a pack of wipes that are supposed to be for the purpose, but those are too expensive to keep using long-term. ($5-something for a pack of 20, iirc.) Especially If I Keep Reading This List Maru Get a couple of washable micro-fiber cloths. Wash very carefully, I'd do it by hand and hang dry, just to not pick up lint from anything else. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Scouted: U.S. to collapse in next two years?
On Tue, 6 Jan 2009, Charlie Bell wrote: On 06/01/2009, at 2:37 PM, Dan M wrote: You have now forced me into the following response by this action sir: I agree with you. Woohoo. Woo hoo? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Physicists offer foundation for uprooting a hallowed principle of physics
On Mon, 5 Jan 2009, Rceeberger wrote: http://www.physorg.com/news150388964.html An apple and an anti-apple might not fall at the same rate. xponent But A Mac And An Anti-Apple 2E Do Maru rob Wow, it's almost 11PM, and I was almost despairing of encountering a good reason not to have liquids at the computer today! Congratulations, Rob! Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Who's on Twitter?
On Sat, 3 Jan 2009, David Land wrote: I'm no twitter as http://twitter.com/dland Nick has been kind enough to mention me several times in his musings on Twitter. OK, that one looks somewhat more interesting than some of the Tweets I see dumped to LiveJournal. Then again, the less interesting things are in response to other Tweets, and the person Tweeting the most is engaged in discussions with other folks. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Who's on Twitter?
On Sat, 3 Jan 2009, David Land wrote: Julia, OK, that one looks somewhat more interesting than some of the Tweets I see dumped to LiveJournal. Thank you (if you're referring to my twitter feed). I try to remember that the people who are following me (there are a little under a hundred, with some falling off and new ones replacing them over time) are an audience, so I write with them in mind. Then again, the less interesting things are in response to other Tweets, and the person Tweeting the most is engaged in discussions with other folks. In my experience, the least interesting tweeple are the ones who use twitter as a kind of public instant message with their friends. Every message is a reply to someone else, and they often look something like: @boogerbrain *Yawn* @mesopotamia That's what she said! @fooboo Was that thing actually _on_ your plate? @noobee If you say so, but actually, I like em crunchy. That's what the most prolific feed I see is, mostly. Except a little more interesting than that. It lends a cheerful surreality to my day, so I don't complain. And I get information about the guy's life that I wouldn't otherwise. I wonder if these people have anything at all to say on their own... That one does, actually. His LJ is about half LoudTwitter and half actual posts with real information, and it's usually information I'm glad to have. (Even if it's bad stuff, I like to know what's going on with folks.) There is a hierarchy of engagement on Twitter in which following is worth one point, replying is worth more -- maybe two to five points, and retweeting is maybe double that again. I don't think I've been retweeted. Not bleeding edge enough, I guess. I know someone who has a Twitter account just so's he can send stuff to his to-do list, which is on a website which won't take text messages, but will accept Tweets and convert them into to-do items. He has several people following him, and the fact of that creeps him out just a little. (I think they just need the clue that he's not intending to interact with anyone there.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Incoming!
On Mon, 22 Dec 2008, Gary Nunn wrote: Julia wrote... seriously, there are rabbits in the area, and I'm vaguely phobic about rabbits Have you ever seen the B movie Night of the Lepus? Quite possibly the worst movie of all-time. No, and I think I'll skip that one. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Why?
Why does moister air carry odors better? (This question occurred to me as I was driving through the fairly thin but thicker-in-spots fog we have at the moment and in a thicker part of it, got the unmistakable odor of Cowfield. And when you've had gym class downwind of a dairy farm, you can't mistake the odor of Cowfield for at least the next 25 years) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Sun, 21 Dec 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: My favorite, though, is the suspended fog layer a couple of feet or so off the ground and only a few inches thick. Those only form when there is *no* wind, at all, and usually aren't visible unless you see them almost edge-on. They don't ever form on highways because the air movement from a passing car will stir them up too much, but they form in the fields beside the road here and there. It's just a rather visually striking phenomenon, for me at least .. :) You mean, you get no wind at times there? ::boggle:: (I live on a ridge. There seems to be no such thing as no wind at my house. If I went to the ravine on our property, I might find no wind, but I'm a little nervous about critters. If there's a vorpal bunny anywhere in the area, it's going to be there.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Mon, 22 Dec 2008, Doug Pensinger wrote: Julia wrote: (I live on a ridge. There seems to be no such thing as no wind at my house. If I went to the ravine on our property, I might find no wind, but I'm a little nervous about critters. If there's a vorpal bunny anywhere in the area, it's going to be there.) What, you don't have a holy hand grenade? Well, if I knew for sure it was there, or not there, I'd be better about it. And no, we don't have a holy hand grenade. :( Julia seriously, there are rabbits in the area, and I'm vaguely phobic about rabbits ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Sat, 20 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 10:13 AM Saturday 12/20/2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Dec 20, 2008, at 10:07 AM, Julia Thompson wrote: If the forecasts are correct by this time tomorrow I will need to dig out the winter gear again . . . though at least the week of almost-constant rain will be ending . . . And -- according to my local forecast, a cold front is coming through sometime between this afternoon and tomorrow morning. I wish it would just make up its mind what temperature it's going to be Julia Still in the 60s here, though I've already closed the windows. Expected to be in the upper 30s by morning, and maybe as low as 20 (°F, for Alberto, et. al.) Monday or Tuesday morning . . . In the 30s today. And the day or two of fog we get after each cold front is only entertaining up to a point. Fog? Yep, we've been having that, too . . . Most of the driving I do first thing in the morning is on rural roads, just 1 block on anything you could call a highway and a little more than a mile on something that's neither highway nor rural in character. People are relatively sane with their driving, but it's kind of weird to see the Highway Intersection 1000', have the road curve so the actual distance to the closest bit of highway is significantly less than that, and being *barely* able to see the rise of the main part of the highway to go *over* the road. Then the next morning, there was comparable but not identical fog. I had fun comparing the two mornings in the same spots as I went along. (Stuff south of the highway was denser, in general, on the second morning, while the stuff north of it was less dense the second morning.) The effect an actual dense fog has on people's driving behavior in Texas has to be seen to be believed. On the roads you're on, Bruce, yes. On the roads I was on, people mostly just moderated their speed and didn't do anything stupid. :) The worst fog I have ever seen was one night between Windsor and Toronto, where literally all that was visible was a few feet of the road right in front of the car. And all the natives were flying by at 70 or 75 mph . . . (They can mostly deal with rain, up to a point. Snow or ice, forget it. :) I suspect that it's worse in Utah the first time it snows. Apparently over the summer everyone forgets how to drive in snow. At least here it's rare enough that people treat it as unusual and take more care. Also, when snow is likely schools cancel class and other things shut down so there are fewer people trying to get through it (though for the women who go into labor during the storm and need to get to the hospital on the top of the hill . . . ) And to tie-in to another thread: that is one of the times people around here rely on their TV-band radios . . . We don't get ice or snow very often at all, but when we do, it tends to shut stuff down rather badly. If I thought I'd be able to stop at the end of my street when it ices, I could manage to get around -- but it's partly that I know you need to be extra, extra cautious for that, and I'm good at skid recovery, as long as I manage to stay on the road. (Hence the potential problem at the end of my street.) I also found out on Friday that I still remember how to walk on ice -- I was walking down a hallway with enough water on the floor to make it slick in spots, and I just automatically went into ice-walking mode to reduce the chances of my slipping. That was weird. Then again, a lot about Friday was weird. (I may reconsider the hit all 3 kids' holiday parties at school thing next year, for one thing.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Sat, 20 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 10:41 PM Friday 12/19/2008, Julia Thompson wrote: On Fri, 19 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 08:08 AM Thursday 12/18/2008, Julia Thompson wrote: On Wed, 17 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 09:02 PM Wednesday 12/17/2008, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Dec 17, 2008, at 3:05 PM, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Shoe-fly pie. Your fly is open. No it's not. I'm not even wearing pants. Possibly TMI Maru Oh. That reminds me, I need to get a couple of kilts out of the washer and hang them up to dry Julia Not exactly. I was wearing sports-type shorts with an elastic waistband rather than a fly . . . Well, I was in Whole Foods in Austin on No Pants Day and a certain individual I know spotted me there and said, Way to celebrate No Pants Day! And I looked at him funny, and asked him when he'd last seen me in something other than a kilt. (Only one of the two kilts in question was mine. We have matching black Workman model kilts. Probably disgustingly cute or something like that.) Julia If the forecasts are correct by this time tomorrow I will need to dig out the winter gear again . . . though at least the week of almost-constant rain will be ending . . . And -- according to my local forecast, a cold front is coming through sometime between this afternoon and tomorrow morning. I wish it would just make up its mind what temperature it's going to be Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Fri, 19 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 08:08 AM Thursday 12/18/2008, Julia Thompson wrote: On Wed, 17 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 09:02 PM Wednesday 12/17/2008, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Dec 17, 2008, at 3:05 PM, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Shoe-fly pie. Your fly is open. No it's not. I'm not even wearing pants. Possibly TMI Maru Oh. That reminds me, I need to get a couple of kilts out of the washer and hang them up to dry Julia Not exactly. I was wearing sports-type shorts with an elastic waistband rather than a fly . . . Well, I was in Whole Foods in Austin on No Pants Day and a certain individual I know spotted me there and said, Way to celebrate No Pants Day! And I looked at him funny, and asked him when he'd last seen me in something other than a kilt. (Only one of the two kilts in question was mine. We have matching black Workman model kilts. Probably disgustingly cute or something like that.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Incoming!
On Wed, 17 Dec 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 09:02 PM Wednesday 12/17/2008, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Dec 17, 2008, at 3:05 PM, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Shoe-fly pie. Your fly is open. No it's not. I'm not even wearing pants. Possibly TMI Maru Oh. That reminds me, I need to get a couple of kilts out of the washer and hang them up to dry Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Anathem
On Sat, 6 Dec 2008, Doug Pensinger wrote: So has any one finished? I'm about 250 in and so far; very good. Doug Yes. It totally rocks. It takes a few turns, but when you get to the end, you realize that's where it was headed all along. Oh, and all those different words terms? One of them is *much* better than our term, IMO. (But I think that's around page 620 or so.) And my favorite quote of the book is on page 320. :) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Anathem
I'm not Doug, but I think treating yourself to a copy is an excellent
idea!
Julia
On Sun, 7 Dec 2008, Danny O'Dare wrote:
Hi Doug,
So what are your impressions of the book? I'm a big NS fan, but haven't got
Anathem yet. However, I'm thinking of treating myself for Xmas - a good
idea, yes?
Cheers,
DANNY
2008/12/7 Doug Pensinger [EMAIL PROTECTED]
So has any one finished?
I'm about 250 in and so far; very good.
Doug
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--
It has been reported that Tanuki fell from the sky using his scrotum as a
parachute -- Tom Robbins ('Villa Incognito').
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Re: Anathem
On Sun, 7 Dec 2008, Martin Lewis wrote: On Sun, Dec 7, 2008 at 2:50 PM, Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: So has any one finished? I'm about 250 in and so far; very good. It takes a few turns, but when you get to the end, you realize that's where it was headed all along. Yes, lots of big stuff still to happen. Lots. And the last turn is *very* close to the end. And my favorite quote of the book is on page 320. :) Obviously, I had to look this up. Protractor? Yep. :) That's right up there with the Zulus in _The Diamond Age_, IMO. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Anathem
On Sun, 7 Dec 2008, John Williams wrote: On Sun, Dec 7, 2008 at 6:50 AM, Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Oh, and all those different words terms? One of them is *much* better than our term, IMO. (But I think that's around page 620 or so.) And my favorite quote of the book is on page 320. :) I've already given away my copy. So what is the term and the quote you are referring to? You can add spoiler space if necessary... Sent offlist for now. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Epochal media: 200 years ago and next week!
On Wed, 3 Dec 2008, d.brin wrote: As for the Violin Concerto...? Matters of art are subjective, of course. But I deem Beethoven's Violin Concerto to be the greatest work of music ever conceived by Man. Can someone with good knowledge of this piece recommend a particular recording of it? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Wal-Mart is evil, why it must be eradicated
On Tue, 2 Dec 2008, Alberto Monteiro wrote: Doug Pensinger wrote: Not by climate. Not by access to a diverse environment (beach in Austin? Mountians?) And by the way, I hate LA and I'd consider Austin before I would LA. Well, maybe... The only place in the USA I know is LA. I think I could live there. See Austin first before you make up your mind. :) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Quantum physics
On Sat, 29 Nov 2008, Euan Ritchie wrote: Ooops, that non-sequitor was meant for another list. It was fine here, as far as I'm concerned. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Wal-Mart is evil, why it must be eradicated
On Sat, 29 Nov 2008, William T Goodall wrote: On 28 Nov 2008, at 23:46, Dave Land wrote: Some on this list have opined that religion is a great poison that kills. I believe that a good deal of the damage done in the _name_ of religion is, in fact, done in the name of greed. Worshippers of Mammon? Another false religion Maru Yeah. With some of the religious figures in the US, I think they've forgotten what Jesus said about not being able to serve two masters, and they're actually serving mammon. And fleecing their followers to do so, and telling them that if they only believe, they'll have great riches on Earth. Kinda contradicts the whole lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven thing, all around. (Matthew chapter 6 contradicts a lot of things that people are doing *supposedly* in the name of Jesus.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: [Humor] I'm Not One Of Those 'Love Thy Neighbor' Christians
On Thu, 20 Nov 2008, William T Goodall wrote: http://www.theonion.com/content/opinion/im_not_one_of_those_love_thy Satire Maru The thing about effective satire is that it hits very *close* to the truth. Thank you for reminding me of my desire to bitch-slap people who claim to be Christians and are a lot more hung up on Leviticus than Matthew chapters 5-7. :) (Problem is, bitch-slapping is more in keeping with Leviticus than that section of Matthew.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Rude and insulting
On Sun, 16 Nov 2008, Nick Arnett wrote: On Sun, Nov 16, 2008 at 6:52 PM, David Hobby [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: That's too bad, and sounds like an extreme response. May I suggest simply killfiling the source of your irritation as an intermediate option? I'd agree, or just consider asking yourself this question before hitting Send: Am I trying to change somebody other than myself? If the answer is yes, discard it or re-write until you're satisfied that you are just discussing the issue, not trying to change the other person. I am very, very slow to respond to requests to remove people from the list. It is appalling how lethargic I become. I'm just contrary. And slow to do for others what, in theory, they should be able to do for themselves. (At least, that's where I am this month.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Metaphors for Financial Reform
On Sun, 16 Nov 2008, John Williams wrote: I think David Brin would have called these memes instead of metaphors. Maybe Brin follows meme #2 (uplift those rambunctious chimpanzees !) ? If you want to repost with Brin: in the subject line, he'll see it. I found it interesting, but have no time to reply in-depth today. (I shouldn't even be on the computer right now, but, well, I am.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Credit Default Swaps
It seems perhaps that credit default swaps aren't the boogeyman that they've been painted by some. The Meltdown That Wasn't http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122670411909729683.html Excerpt: Credit default swaps are contracts that insure against a borrower defaulting on its bonds. The buyer of a CDS contract essentially pays annual premiums and the seller agrees to pay back the principal if the issuer of the bonds doesn't. It's different from insurance in that an investor doesn't actually have to own the underlying bonds -- he can simply buy a CDS as a way to make a bearish bet on a company or to offset other risks. Shattering Beltway illusions, the unregulated CDS market is holding up better than the regulated bond market. Here we are more than a year into the credit meltdown and the CDS market is offering more liquidity than the actual cash market. Eraj Shirvani at Credit Suisse notes that over the last 18 months, the CDS market -- not the bond market -- has been the only functioning market that has consistently allowed market participants to hedge or express a credit view. * * * * * * * * The column goes on to talk about Lehman's failure - that had little to do with CDS, but a lot to do with toxic mortgages. Anyway, I'd like to hear what other people interested in the economic debate here have to say about it. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Nouriel Roubini on, among other things, the Baltic Dry Index
http://www.rgemonitor.com/financemarkets-monitor/254399/systemic_risk_contagion_and_trade_finance_-_back_to_the_bad_old_days http://tinyurl.com/5dge9z The collapse of letters of credit for financing exports as a result of the current financial crisis will have negative impacts on everyone employed in the supply chain. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouriel_Roubini if you want to know who he is. Very short version: a financial Cassandra who is starting to be believed by many due to his accuracy in predicting recent financial crises.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: How Government Stoked the Mania
On Sun, 16 Nov 2008, John Williams wrote: In case you missed it, hear is an article from last month. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122298982558700341.html How Government Stoked the Mania Housing prices would never have risen so high without multiple Washington mistakes. by Russell Roberts I think I had missed it (I click on only about 15% of the links sent in the e-mail I get every day from WSJ). I'm guessing you've already looked at the WSJ column I just sent a link to. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Bush was far more clueless and incompetent.
On Sun, 16 Nov 2008, Jon Louis Mann wrote: Politicians were clueless as usual. Here are some quotes about Fannie and Freddie by clueless politicians and regulators. FF had very little impact as far as causing the economic crisis, compared to other factors. What are the other factors? It looked to me from that article that Rob linked to that there was a fair amount of cause wrapped up in F F. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Polarization
On Thu, 13 Nov 2008, John Williams wrote: Your two previous links did not give an example of how Bush deregulated anything that may have lead to the subprime mortgage crisis. The youtube video you listed does not give any examples of deregulation either. I don't think that word means what you think it means. OK, *there's* the proof of the sense of humor, quoting Princess Bride. (Any old fool can dump links from The Onion.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: rude and insulting
On Sat, 15 Nov 2008, Nick Arnett wrote: On Sat, Nov 15, 2008 at 5:43 PM, Jon Louis Mann [EMAIL PROTECTED]wrote: any theories why this person has such a mean streak. I don't think that's my business. He is what he is. I find greater peace when I manage to accept people as they are, rather than as I think they should be. I would invite others to do the same, but I''m not saying they should. Good, because if you *were* saying they should, that would violate the acceptance of people as they *are*. I've found it to be a helpful sort of attitude for myself, personally, except I have very little toleration for some characteristics and someone displaying those characteristics more prominently than the ones I consider to be more positive will likely get a Oh, man, why can't he be less --- in my head. That's something I need to work on more. (I think I figured out this week just why I, and a certain group I belong to, have little tolerance for one of those characteristics I perceive as negative. That may be a step in the right direction for me, at least to be able to step back and understand why I react badly to it.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Why the Great Depression Lasted So Long and Why Prosperity Resumed after the War
On Mon, 10 Nov 2008, Nick Arnett wrote: On Mon, Nov 10, 2008 at 12:01 PM, John Williams [EMAIL PROTECTED]wrote: Actually, I don't. But the relevant fact is, what do you consider it? Why did you not post a similar background note on, for example, James Hamilton? Who? Nick http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Hamilton One of them, probably. My guess is James Douglas Hamilton, the econometrician. Unfortunately, his article doesn't say a whole lot. There *is* a link to a blog he contributes to. The entry about the touchdown was pretty cool! Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Who is John W?
On Sun, 9 Nov 2008, William T Goodall wrote: On 9 Nov 2008, at 18:19, Bruce Bostwick wrote: I have to ask .. is anyone really learning anything or gaining anything from continuing this conversation at this point, other than focusing attention on someone who clearly is thriving on it? I don't see the point of it. If there is one Maru I agree with William. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Who is John W?
On Sun, 9 Nov 2008, Jon Louis Mann wrote: I have to ask .. is anyone really learning anything or gaining anything from continuing this conversation at this point, other than focusing attention on someone who clearly is thriving on it? I don't see the point of it. If there is one Maru I agree with William. Julia you're all right. i guesss enquiring minds should review the story of the cat... jm I wasn't thinking so much of the cat, but the horse. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Getting decent news without cable or satellite TV...
On Tue, 4 Nov 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Smart-Aleck response #1 would be something about whether the news one gets anytime (not just election day) with or without cable or satellite TV could ever be described as decent . . . Are the newscasters wearing enough clothing? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: When Atheists Attack (another in our endless series of cut-n-paste screeds)
On Mon, 3 Nov 2008, Dave Land wrote: Man threatens two Christians, may lose an eye (http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_10464829) COLORADO SPRINGS — A man who came to the home of two women whom he had threatened to decapitate with a knife received a blow to the head that could cost him an eye, according to Colorado Springs police. Russell Bowman, who claims to be an atheist, threatened the women because they are Christian on Sept. 8. On Friday, he arrived at their apartment and stood in a hallway, according to a police report. Another resident of the apartment retrieved a shotgun and approached Bowman, who was by then walking away. The resident ordered Bowman to put the knife down, according to the report. Bowman refused and approached the resident, who hit him with the butt of the shotgun, injuring his eye. Bowman was treated at Memorial Hospital where it was determined the injury to the eye was so severe, the eye would need to be surgically removed, the report said. There's a huge difference between atheists, even militant ones, and psychos who go around attacking other people on the basis of what religion the other people subscribe to. And psychos who attack other people for whatever reason are asking for whatever the intended victims dish out in self-defense. (FWIW, this is not the first time I've heard of someone losing an eye due to an injury bestowed by a woman he was trying to harm. In that case, the intent was rape of someone he thought would be an easy target. She turned out not to be.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Early voting
On Sun, 2 Nov 2008, Bryon Daly wrote: I did the early voting thing on Friday down here in Orlando. Some of the locations were reporting 2+ hour waits, but it was about 45 minutes wait for me. I had the day off, so the wait wasn't bad, but I'm quite puzzled about the people waiting 2+ hours around here, or as long as 10+ hours in the Atlanta area, from the reports I've seen. Can there really be THAT many people unable to vote on election day, that they need to get on a line to wait 10 hours (or even 2+ hours) to vote? There's a ton more voting locations open on election day, and I've never had to wait more that 20 minutes or so to vote then. Even with the increased turnout this year, I can't imagine 10 hour lines on election day itself - particularly with the early vote being so popular this year. Anyone else do early voting? How long did you wait? Would you have waited 2+ hours to do it early? I did not have that long of a wait. I got to my early voting place about half an hour after it opened. I was apparently the 52nd or 53rd person to vote there that day. I just had to wait for 2 other people to be processed in the line; the procedure is different from what it has been. The early voting location I drove my friend to had waits of around 30 minutes at times, but we got there at the tail end of a rush and she didn't have to wait long at all. We were expecting the wait to be longer and planned accordingly. I vote early because if something comes up at the absolute last minute to prevent me from voting on election day, I want to have voted by then. So far, I've had morning sickness keep me in on an election day, but I had voted early (I think that was the first time I voted early, and I had good days and bad days, and took advantage of a good day to vote). My husband had a really close call with not being able to vote on an election day; he showed up at the polls with his hospital ID still on his wrist and in house slippers. I was surprised by the lack of supporters or even signs at the voting location. I saw one small Obama sign and some local runners of either party along the road, and that's it. Maybe they save that stuff for election day. The local paper (Orlando Sentinel) reported last week that in early voting turnout, african-american turnout was up, as widely predicted, but the youth (under 35) turnout was actually quite a bit lower than expected - Obama's popularity among the younger crowd had been expected to drive up turnout. From what I saw, there weren't many under-35's at my location, either. (Sadly, I don't fall under the youth category, even with that broad definition.) I don't know what's been going on with the voting in my area, as far as who is voting. My own polling place, it was all people over 20 taking advantage of the first day that early voting was available in that particular spot. (Some of the early voting places in my county weren't open every day of early voting, and the most convenient one for me wasn't open until the 4th day of voting.) Oh, and I'm not under 35, either. :) I have no idea how old I *look* anymore, even. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Happy Halloween
On Sat, 1 Nov 2008, Dave Land wrote: On Oct 31, 2008, at 8:22 PM, Nick Arnett wrote: As the trick-or-treater came by tonight, I found myself tonight remembering going to the Isaly's house on Halloween and getting Klondike bars with pumpkin pie flavored centers... Mmmm. The Isaly's company invented the Klondike bar... and at Christmas, we'd go caroling and they'd give us Klondikes with mint, tree-shaped centers. Nobody in my neighborhood invented nothin'. Joes the Plumbers, mostly Maru The only invention in either of the neighborhoods I grew up in that I was aware of was the man down the street who had invented the machine that stamped Necco onto Necco wafers. (He'd also blown up an abandoned brick structure with his brothers. About a month later, the absentee owner of the land on which said brick structure had stood wrote their father asking him to take it down, and offering payment for him to do so.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Happy Halloween
On Sat, 1 Nov 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Nov 1, 2008, at 1:41 PM, Julia Thompson wrote: On Sat, 1 Nov 2008, Dave Land wrote: On Oct 31, 2008, at 8:22 PM, Nick Arnett wrote: As the trick-or-treater came by tonight, I found myself tonight remembering going to the Isaly's house on Halloween and getting Klondike bars with pumpkin pie flavored centers... Mmmm. The Isaly's company invented the Klondike bar... and at Christmas, we'd go caroling and they'd give us Klondikes with mint, tree-shaped centers. Nobody in my neighborhood invented nothin'. Joes the Plumbers, mostly Maru The only invention in either of the neighborhoods I grew up in that I was aware of was the man down the street who had invented the machine that stamped Necco onto Necco wafers. (He'd also blown up an abandoned brick structure with his brothers. About a month later, the absentee owner of the land on which said brick structure had stood wrote their father asking him to take it down, and offering payment for him to do so.) Julia Did their father respond with an invoice for services rendered? :D I think their father had them clean up what was left and collected the offered amount from the owner when he showed up later to see if it had been taken care of. :) Easiest howevermany dollars he'd ever made, probably. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Happy Halloween
On Sat, 1 Nov 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: Given that the first time I heard of Necco wafers was as competition . 22 rifle targets and only much later that they were in fact edible, I've always wondered if more of them have been shot or eaten .. :) On Nov 1, 2008, at 1:41 PM, Julia Thompson wrote: The only invention in either of the neighborhoods I grew up in that I was aware of was the man down the street who had invented the machine that stamped Necco onto Necco wafers. You know, shooting them sounds like a better idea to me. :) I came to the conclusion as a pre-teen that the only decent ones were the chocolate ones, and I'd buy 1 or 2 rolls of those a year. Gave that up about 10 years ago. (They have the advantage of being at least vaguely chocolate, but not melting easily.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Single payer health care
On Wed, 29 Oct 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Oct 29, 2008, at 9:21 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: On Tue, Oct 28, 2008 at 8:48 PM, Ronn! Blankenship [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: No, we have examples here of things where there is no competition or they have to take everyone regardless of ability to pay the bill, like the ones I listed. (Nothing to do with RD but with simply getting seen and getting adequate care.) If we get one-size-fits-all health care, how do we insure that it does not degrade like many other things already have? Let them eat cake? TINSTAAFL. Some people lose when an unfair system is made more fair. Nick Let the patients have a say in how the system is designed? Or -- OMGZ! -- maybe let them design it? At the very least, put actual practicing MD's in charge of the medical decisions to cover or not cover treatment, and hold them accountable for permanent health consequences if they dodge covering a treatment that turns out to have been medically necessary? That, at least, would be better than anonymous, unaccountable spreadsheet jockeys making those same decisions with the only criteria being the insurer's bottom line .. My wonderful OB (who has since retired from delivering babies) told me about the way she dealt with insurance company people insisting that she had to discharge the patient because it had been 48 hours since delivery was to explain *why* the patient needed to stay in the hospital another 24 hours, and if that didn't do the trick, her final ploy was to inform the person on the other end of the phone that if *they* wanted the patient discharged, they could damn well come and fill out the discharge forms themselves. *That* tended to close down the argument. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My two rules of politics
Given that I was talking about how much a hypothetical Democrat would spend vs. what a hypothetical Libertarian would spend, I don't see how dragging a Republican into the mix refutes my statement. Your statement is irrelevant in the context of what was said. I'm not going to argue against your point (in fact, I think it's quite valid!), just point out that it doesn't address what was under discussion in the thread you're quoting. Julia On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: this is quite illogical what democrat has spent more than the present republican president? Check this out at a price of $10 to $15 billion dollars a month there you have it---your more than $700 billion dollars short fall. Cum on yall I'm sure yall can count and think better than the crew you keep putting in control over the wealth which the people create--give me a break! -- Original message from Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED]: -- On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson Well, on my ballot, if I were to not vote for the incumbent in a lot of the state local races, that left me with a choice between a Democrat and a Libertarian in all of the cases where I was left with a choice of 2 non-incumbents. The Democrats would be more likely to spend more. Which is why I came to the conclusion I did. I guess your ballots are somewhat different from mine, then, in terms of how heavily any given party is represented, and how likely a candidate from a particular party is to beat one from another particular party. I wish there were as many libertarians in the top 3 on my ballots as there were on yours! You must live in a libertarian-friendly area. North of Austin, TX. Texas is somewhat interesting that way in some places Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My two rules of politics
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Oct 26, 2008, at 5:29 PM, Julia Thompson wrote: On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Well, on my ballot, if I were to not vote for the incumbent in a lot of the state local races, that left me with a choice between a Democrat and a Libertarian in all of the cases where I was left with a choice of 2 non-incumbents. The Democrats would be more likely to spend more. Which is why I came to the conclusion I did. I guess your ballots are somewhat different from mine, then, in terms of how heavily any given party is represented, and how likely a candidate from a particular party is to beat one from another particular party. I wish there were as many libertarians in the top 3 on my ballots as there were on yours! You must live in a libertarian-friendly area. North of Austin, TX. Texas is somewhat interesting that way in some places Julia And, in many cases, the Libertarian Party candidates are something a little different from what I'd call small-l libertarian. The capital- L variety, around here at least, tend to be more than a little on the neopentecostal-theocratic side. Maybe tend to be, but I wouldn't characterize George Paap that way, and he got on the ballot in Williamson County as a Libertarian candidate not too long ago In fact, I think that if there's a *cure* for neopentocostal-theocratic-ness, George could be an ingredient for that cure. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: An armed society
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, Jon Louis Mann wrote: Then again, an armed society is a polite society .. Bruce, We have found that in general Americans are the politest people we have met. They are also incredibly welcoming and friendly. We have certainly speculated if this was in part due to the variety of arms we have seen. I still shudder when a truck pulled up next to us in a supermarket car park with a shot gun on prominent display in the back window. When the driver opened the door of the truck it was surprising that there was room for him to sit with all the weapons visible in the car. That is more weapons than I had seen in my lifetime. The local Sheriff pulled in beside him and they had a conversation. I think from the body language that the Sheriff was admiring the guns, but I can't be sure and I did not want to hang around to find out. Regards, Maree someone with that many weapons on display must be doing it for show, or to compensate for some other kind of inadequacy. one gun should be sufficient for self protection. if gun toting red necks are polite to you it is likely because of your accent, plus you can't vote for obama!~) jon If you're trying to put food on the table, you may want more than one rifle for doing so. (Plus, if you're in rattlesnake country, you want a sidearm in case you find yourself too close to a rattler. Just remember to take the damn thing out of your bag before you go to the airport with that bag, m'kay?) And, geez, I *know* gun-toting rednecks who are voting for Obama, and I'm somewhat irked that someone can't look past a stereotype and instead makes jabs. If you don't live in gun country, don't be throwing around stereotypes about people who do. Julia who may have the only gun-free house in the neighborhood, but it's certainly not *weapon*-free ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Senator Ted Stevens found guilty
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/27/AR2008102700289.html?hpid=topnews No time to comment myself, but I thought some folks might be interested. There's plenty of fodder in the article itself for commenting upon, I think. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: An armed society
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: At 03:30 PM Monday 10/27/2008, Julia Thompson wrote: If you're trying to put food on the table, you may want more than one rifle for doing so. (Plus, if you're in rattlesnake country, you want a sidearm in case you find yourself too close to a rattler. Just remember to take the damn thing out of your bag before you go to the airport with that bag, m'kay?) I hope you are not talking from personal experience. No, just 2 incidents I heard about, the second involving the owner of the Dallas Cowboys. And, geez, I *know* gun-toting rednecks who are voting for Obama, and I'm somewhat irked that someone can't look past a stereotype and instead makes jabs. If you don't live in gun country, don't be throwing around stereotypes about people who do. Julia who may have the only gun-free house in the neighborhood, but it's certainly not *weapon*-free And I doubt you or anyone else familiar with them would claim that a single type of sharp object would be adequate or even usable in all situations. No. The katana isn't going to work all that well if you've got limited space, and the Klingon knife isn't going to work at arm's length all that well. Just to name 2. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] On Mon, Oct 27, 2008 at 5:56 PM, John Williams wrote: So your position is, if a majority votes for some policy, then no one should have a right to complain about it because the majority rules? No, that's not my position. Not at all. My position is that it is wrong to misrepresent democracy as coercion. LOL! I wasn't expecting slapstick! So, your view of democracy is 2 wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for lunch? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: death and taxes...
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, Kevin B. O'Brien wrote: Mostly that was just a weird story that leaves you going Huh?, but false analogy is used a lot. One of the best ones was popular some years back, before the Republican party descended into outright criminality. It goes like this: The government is just like a family, it cannot live beyond its means. Many people who gave the outward appearance of intelligence bought into this one, but it fails at the outset. The government is not just like a family. In fact, one could search far and wide and have trouble finding two institutions more unlike than a government and a family. Apples and oranges are identical twins when placed next to governments and families. And yet many people focused on the second part of the statement, while ignoring the fact that the premise was stupendously wrong, so wrong that it should have invalidated anything that followed after it. And I see identical twins in there, and wonder, Monoamniotic? I should probably head for bed now Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Mon, 27 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] So, your view of democracy is 2 wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for lunch? Nicely put. Not original to me. Maybe Benjamin Franklin? Or at least I think I've seen him credited with it, whether or not he actually said it. Just trying to get a somewhat better feel for your position, and your response was very helpful to me in that regard. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Undecided
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: From: xponentrob [EMAIL PROTECTED] The chicken contains just enough poison that no one gets everything they want. The taste is just good enough to remain edible to most people. Until avian influenza strikes. That's spread in the market, if the chicken is cooked, it's probably OK to eat. Unless the cook was the one who dressed it, and then sneezed all over everything as it was coming out. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, Rceeberger wrote: http://www.sltrib.com/Opinion/ci_10815189 [snip] * JOHN GRIZ THE CARPENTER GRISWOLD works in Salt Lake City. (Which BTW is in about the Reddest state there is.) And that's from a paper that's endorsing Obama. http://www.sltrib.com/ci_10761520 Mighty interesting things happening Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, Jon Louis Mann wrote: not so, the public seems to have swallowed the latest redistribution of wealth upwards. More like the politicians stuffed it down our throats. and the sheep accept it, like they accepted the bush/cheny agenda, like they believe that real threat to america was terrorism, and now socialism... I'd like to be able to vomit up chunks of it. Julia p.s. if I need to refrain from using bodily functions in my analogies in the future for someone else's comfort, let me know ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Jon Louis Mann [EMAIL PROTECTED] We do need need someone to ride in and save us from disaster! God will save us, if we have faith. And what if we don't? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, Richard Baker wrote: Nick said: Let's start with the public schools and hospitals and keep going with the hatchet until nobody gets *anything* that they didn't pay for. Toll booths on every road and park! You damn socialists and your free air and sunshine! Free as in beer, or free as in freedom? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Jon Louis Mann [EMAIL PROTECTED] you can't equate the two parties even if they both passed it. Indeed I don't. More Democrats voted for it than Republicans. Definitely not equal. What proportion of each party voted for it? Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My two rules of politics
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: For what it is worth, I have two simple rules for deciding which candidates get my vote: 1) Never vote for the incumbent 2) Of the remaining candidates, predict which two are most likely to win. Vote for the one who is likely to spend less. Vote Libertarian much? (I had more Libertarians on my ballot than Democrats. More Republicans than Libertarians. 4 Republican judges running unopposed will do that) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My two rules of politics
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Vote Libertarian much? No, they are rarely in the top two. Probably because libertarians do much less pandering to special interests. Well, on my ballot, if I were to not vote for the incumbent in a lot of the state local races, that left me with a choice between a Democrat and a Libertarian in all of the cases where I was left with a choice of 2 non-incumbents. The Democrats would be more likely to spend more. Which is why I came to the conclusion I did. I guess your ballots are somewhat different from mine, then, in terms of how heavily any given party is represented, and how likely a candidate from a particular party is to beat one from another particular party. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Redistribute the wealth
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] What proportion of each party voted for it? 74.6% of Democrats in the House and Senate who cast a vote, voted aye for HR-1424. 50.4% of voting Republicans voted aye. http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/house/2/votes/681/ http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/senate/2/votes/213/ Thank you for the information. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: My two rules of politics
On Sun, 26 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Julia Thompson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Well, on my ballot, if I were to not vote for the incumbent in a lot of the state local races, that left me with a choice between a Democrat and a Libertarian in all of the cases where I was left with a choice of 2 non-incumbents. The Democrats would be more likely to spend more. Which is why I came to the conclusion I did. I guess your ballots are somewhat different from mine, then, in terms of how heavily any given party is represented, and how likely a candidate from a particular party is to beat one from another particular party. I wish there were as many libertarians in the top 3 on my ballots as there were on yours! You must live in a libertarian-friendly area. North of Austin, TX. Texas is somewhat interesting that way in some places Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: New Creationist Ploy
On Sat, 25 Oct 2008, William T Goodall wrote: http://tinyurl.com/6o9w33 Creationists declare war over the brain • 22 October 2008 • From New Scientist Print Edition. Subscribe and get 4 free issues. Sweet. I've used the universal wishlist button to add this to my amazon wishlist, maybe someone will see fit to give it to me. (At least my husband will be aware that I want it.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Racial and Gender bigotry
OK, I'd love to hear from anyone who's been contributing to this thread: List *up to* three female Hispanic politicians, explaining to me why each would make a good vice-presidential candidate. If you only pick one, that's fine. Throwing URLs around right and left is providing information, but it's providing me with too much at the moment, and if I try to pursue it, I'm cluttering up an already-cluttered desktop. If you get down to the specifics, that THIS female Hispanic would be a good pick for VP, and give me a convincing argument, that will stick a lot better with me in the long run than just the statement, We should be considering female Hispanics for these positions. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Racial and Gender bigotry
On Thu, 23 Oct 2008, Jon Louis Mann wrote: I agree with John and all the others who think that the best man or woman for the job is the best man or woman for the job! If you believe that then you must also believe either a) white men are remarkably better at important jobs than other people, or b) there is a distinct bias against people who aren't white men for important jobs. If you believe (b) don't you think something should be done about that? Ideals Maru William T Goodall i absolutely do believe there is a distinct bias against people who aren't white men for important jobs in government. do you deny it? i also believe something should be done about it. do you believe that white men are remarkably better at important jobs than other people? jon I think better access to the kind of education and social networking opportunities that white males are a lot more likely to have access to when they're young would make it easier for women and minorities to make better inroads. So then we just work on solving *that* problem, and the bigger one we've been discussing will be a lot closer to being solved in 30 years. (No, I'm not sure just how to do that. I think giving scholarships to appropriate colleges based on *zip code* in the US will get around any race-based restrictions one way or the other but will get more of the minorities in the door with carefully selected zip codes.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Future of the list / Questions?
On Tue, 21 Oct 2008, Dave Land wrote: On Oct 21, 2008, at 1:46 PM, Nick Arnett wrote: On Tue, Oct 21, 2008 at 1:36 PM, Wayne Eddy [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Should it move to a newer type of platform? Facebook or a wiki maybe? Does the list have a life of its own? Does it somehow attract the type of member that will enable it live forever? Are monotonous posts and trolls and heated discussions the way it has found to survive? I hate to pre-announce... but I'm working on installing a blog interface. I also hope to mirror that blog to another server, as backup. As long as the email interface persists, please. I like the fact that it comes to me, rather than my having one more place to go to check out the goings-on. Several communities of which I've been a part have threatened to go all-web (for various reasons) and the practically universal response has been but keep the emails coming. I suspect that's why there's been such little move to go set up web forums in one of my RL communities. I mean, who wants to deal with that when you can just sit there and hope that Julia sets up a Yahoo group for it? :) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Future of the list / Questions?
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Oct 22, 2008, at 5:33 PM, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Also, as someone has mentioned, many people prefer having the messages come to them (as on a list like this) rather than them having to remember to look somewhere else for them . . . Now, this isn't necessarily a problem if you set the RSS feed up right. (I follow several online communities from my mail client, which can import RSS feeds along with mail accounts. Getting xkcd in my morning email is a delightful thing to wake up to. :) I'm getting new entries for one blog e-mailed to me. I usually click on the link to take me to the blog site because it's prettier than the e-mail, and if anyone's left a comment, that's how I'll see it, but if I didn't care about the aesthetics or comments, I could just read the e-mails and leave it at that. (The folks running that particular blog did *not* want an LJ syndication set up for it, and once I looked at the website and found out I could get new entries e-mailed to me, I signed up for that, so I'm still in my only one site to check for everything not in e-mail state.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: No more feeding the troll (was Re: Debunking B.S. from the so-called debunker )
On Tue, 21 Oct 2008, Dave Land wrote: On Oct 21, 2008, at 5:20 AM, Andrew Crystall wrote: On 19 Oct 2008 at 19:07, Nick Arnett wrote: I'll stop feeding him now and perhaps ponder just how much disruption the list managers should tolerate. A lot, of course, but sheesh... Said it before, say it again: You're far too forgiving. On forum / list / wiki moderation, I fall into the Stalin/Gulag camp of moderation. I once was one of the admins a forum where we made people take and post photos of a hand-written apology to be able to post again after certain offences... And you settled for that only because you couldn't physically put them in the stocks and have people pelt them with eggs? I'm not a fan of pelting with eggs. Tomatoes are my limit there. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: monotonous posting
On Tue, 21 Oct 2008, Bruce Bostwick wrote: On Oct 20, 2008, at 10:27 AM, Julia Thompson wrote: On Mon, 20 Oct 2008, John Williams wrote: Charlie Bell [EMAIL PROTECTED] I also like the one that goes One has two ears and one mouth, and should use them in that proportion. Don't forget the ten typing fingers. Vs. 2 eyes for reading. Hm Julia Given that i read at least 5 times as fast as I type (probably much faster), that probably works out just about right. :) Actually, depending on what it is, I can type faster than half as fast as I can read at times. I've freaked people out with my typing speed. (Well, one person, anyway. I don't think anyone was freaked so much as remarking on it when I've been doing IM and long responses are sent very quickly. Someone asked if I was doing a copy-paste on one of those, and no, I wasn't.) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Future of the list / Questions?
On Wed, 22 Oct 2008, William T Goodall wrote: An email list represents the bazaar model of idea exchange. One can simply ignore threads of discourse one isn't interested in and killfile those that are irrelevant or pointless. Any more complicated model with ratings, peer trust networks, relevancy association or whatnot is placing faith in the idea someone else's algorithm can sort interesting from bullshit better than oneself. And this is what I like about mailing lists. I tend to read every. single. post (so I'm not subscribed to as many lists as I *might* be), especially the ones I'm a moderator for (and one of the others is deathly dull, but I have to keep an eye out for anything illegal, which has been a problem once or twice), but also for the others. Eventually I work out how much weight to give a particular poster on a particular subject, and have the values for that in my head. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Two Weeks To Go
And I can vote early starting today. Need to read up on the local candidates for county offices before I go, though, to make informed decisions there. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: No more feeding the troll (was Re: Debunking B.S. from the so-called de-bunker )
On Mon, 20 Oct 2008, Ronn! Blankenship wrote: Is a de-bunker what a mother with enough small children that they must share a room uses to get them up in the morning? Deliberately bad singing works sometimes. Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
