But don't forget that big pharma, for all its problems still is the number one creator of new drugs. In 2012 alone, the U.S. government and private companies spent a combined $130 billion (PDF) on medical research.

Ahh, very large numbers without context. Does such a good job of sounding like it means something. Here's some context: 70% increase in profits in the past 10 years, and we have way more drugs available than we can afford. Increasing government imposed restrictions on competition to drive up market price is what you do when a critical industry is having problems, not when they're flush with cash and demand and prices are skyrocketing. It's freaking econ 101 ferfucksake.

Also: Fuck beta. I am not the audience, I am one of the authors of this site. I am Slashdot. This is a debate community. I will leave if it becomes some bullshit IT News 'zine. And I don't think Dice has the chops to beat the existing competitors in that space.

They are the product, sold to ad agencies, and the site is the manufacturing facility. The Beta is a new manufacturing process line being constructed, and the complaints are product being rejected by quality control. If the issues are not resolved by the time the new line goes live, manufacturing volume will suffer, customers will not have anything to purchase, and profits will suffer.

Awww, see how you are? You've gone and ruined a perfectly good incoherent rant with senseless rational analysis.

So the new thing is to walk up, grab their phone out of their hands, and take off. This type of theft is skyrocketing,

That's the stat I'm asking for. The stat in the article does not help assess that. Unfortunately, neither does your compelling, but undocumented, hypothesis.

If I were a mugger, I'd take my victim's cell phone regardless of whether it was a smart phone or $10 Tracfone. You don't want your victims calling the cops right after you flee.

Very interesting thought!

Already half of all robberies in San Francisco and 75 percent of those in Oakland involve a mobile device and the number is rising in Los Angeles, according to police figures.

Some missing stats here: How many robberies is that, how many were there five years ago, and what percentage of robberies involved a wallet? Is this a sign of increasing crime due to cell phones, or are cell phones just a thing of value that most people carry that is taken along with the victim's wallet and watch? What percentage of these crimes will be prevented if a kill switch is implemented?

Without that information, this is just another case of, "Bad things happen, therefore we need more laws!" Effective laws do an excellent job of reducing crime. Crime stats in the US have been on an impressive and near continual downward trend, and that is an excellent thing to achieve. Ineffectual laws do not solve problems, however, and they weaken the system.

Also: Fuck beta. I am not the audience, I am one of the authors of this site. I am Slashdot. This is a debate community. I will leave if it becomes some bullshit IT News 'zine. And I don't think Dice has the chops to beat the existing competitors in that space.

So, it is tempting to resurrect Technocrat.net now that Slashdot stinks worse than the last two times I shut down technocrat.net .

In my ponderings on the idea of an exodus, the thing that kept hanging me up is that we'd need someone with some serious cred, someone whose integrity and dedication to the geek community is nigh unimpeachable. I think you've got that one licked.

I like the idea.

Love it. Your comment is now my sig.

Thank you for listening, and for taking our passion for this site and its battle-tested interface to heart. I look forward to seeing how serious you are about providing -- at least as an option -- the kind of lean, dense, static UI that made Slashdot work so well for so long.

Decided to stop being an anonymous coward after 12+ years so that I can say Fuck Beta!

Wait -- you're saying you're Anonymous Coward, finally unmasked?!? Holy crap do you post a lot.

Fuck Beta!

Shame, I'd actually like to discuss this topic. But, then I'd be jeopardizing every future discussion.

Javascript dancing baloney and giant pretty pictures belong on USA Today, not Slashdot.

The meat of Slashdot, the substance that draws viewers here instead of the alternatives, is the comments. Lose those comments and you will lose the eyeballs. Lose the eyeballs and you will lose the ad revenue.

Alternatively, you can accept that you made a mistake, keep Slashdot classic, and keep the steady flow of cash. Make the right business decision, here, Dice. Don't kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

Alternative alternative: Dice; make us an offer. If you really have written this thing off, give us your stats so we can crunch the numbers and tell us your price. It should be pretty clear that the path you're on will not be lucrative, so show your lowest and best offer. There's some pretty affluent folks here, and this place is important to us. If the workers at Harley Davidson could do it, surely it is possible for us to do the same.

No legitimate discussion until Slashdot classic is restored. Sacrifice a few days of discussion now to save all the days in the future. The Spirit of Mohdri Dragon Lives! (feel free to get drunk and naked while posting)

Javascript dancing baloney and giant pretty pictures belong on USA Today, not Slashdot.

The meat of Slashdot, the substance that draws viewers here instead of the alternatives, is the comments. Lose those comments and you will lose the eyeballs. Lose the eyeballs and you will lose the ad revenue.

Alternatively, you can accept that you made a mistake, keep Slashdot classic, and keep the steady flow of cash. Make the right business decision, here, Dice. Don't kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

No legitimate discussion until Slashdot classic is restored. Sacrifice a few days of discussion now to save all the days in the future. The Spirit of Mohdri Dragon Lives! (feel free to get drunk and naked while posting)