Since about 1997. No doubt there are others who can go earlier than that.

To make reality more complex.

The problem here is that Klink's usual threats don't quite work...

"But Colonel, we _are_ the Russian Front."

And that, boys and girls, is how CowboyNeal wound up with a recording contract. The end.

Actually it is on the East Coast....

of Lake Michigan.

Based on what I've seen and the places I've worked over the years, all of that is nowhere near as easy as it sounds.

Therein lies the reason for the firing. Consider the timing here: It begins with a great deal of uncertainty and rumors regarding a possible 'always online' requirement for the upcoming generation of consoles. Sony comes out and states that they won't be implementing it, which turns all the speculation squarely at Microsoft. Microsoft remains silent on the subject, and then all of a sudden one of their employees shoots his mouth off with some highly scornful Twitter posts about gamers that are concerned about this issue.

The next thing you hear is the sound of thousands of pencils crossing "XBOX 720" off the list of desired consoles for this generation. And Microsoft knows this. That's why he got canned.

Microsoft's problem now is that they're still remaining silent on the issue even after the firing. That makes it look like they're firing him not because they disagree with what he said, but instead because he revealed/confirmed something that Microsoft would much rather keep under wraps. With all the negative PR that this whole mess is generating, wouldn't Microsoft want to publicly contradict what he said if it wasn't true?

You lost me...

Look, I'm going to tell you something... and I don't want you to take it personally... but you're not a very good Slashdot commenter, are you?

Only if a certain percentage of their solar system's mass or above is made up of ethanol.

At least on the weekends....

Chairs like that have been around for years.

Simply put, customers already are voting with their wallets.

How's that working out for you?

And cash poor customers are a byproduct of lower salaries. Does the phrase "downward spiral" mean anything to you?

It's more due to lobbying by existing brick and mortar casinos. The law was passed in 2006 just before congressional adjournment, tacked onto a bill that otherwise dealt with shipping and port security. It specifically prohibits things like internet poker while still allowing long distance transactions on other forms of gambling that the brick and mortars had already established, such as horse racing. So it's about as moral as any other business that uses its lobbyists to legislate away its competition.

Because fate loves irony. He died shortly after offering his kingdom for a horse, and he was found under the wheels of a Mustang.