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Comment Re:100% Talkatone's greed (Score 1) 162

Did you try reading the article you linked? Here's the first paragraph:

One of the most popular ways to make use of Google Voice on Android has long been GrooveIP. This app was able to route voice calls on a device through Google's free IP call service. Google finally ended third-party access to Google Voice yesterday, but GrooveIP was ready with an alternative.

The statement "Google ended third-party access" means it quit working, and that it did so because of Google, not any of the third-party developers!

Comment Re:100% Talkatone's greed (Score 1) 162

O RLY? Okay then, explain why Groove IP and ObiTalk's Google Voice integration quit working at the same time! Surely Groove IP, at least, didn't do it out of greed since they told people to stop using their app at the same time...

Also provide a link to this mysterious "GVoice+" APK, because despite my quite decent web searching skills I couldn't find it and I don't believe it actually exists.

Comment Re:Unchecked governmental BS (Score 2, Insightful) 499

The US government simply has acted like any other employer, in that it is selective in who it hires. What do you want them to do?

I want them to be a whole lot more restricted in what they can do than "any other employer," because they're not "any other employer," they're a goddamn government!

Governments should be held to a much higher standard than any natural person or private organization. There is no such thing as "equal rights" for governments; governments have no rights. Governments are always "guilty until proven innocent." Governments should not defend themselves -- governments should be the people's bitch. It is entirely reasonable for a government to be summarily dissolved by the governed, for any reason or no reason, with no recourse or argument. Anything otherwise is tyranny!

Okay, so that was a bit over-the-top, but I trust you got my point. More specifically, while the government should be allowed to be selective in terms of who it hires based on competency, it should not be allowed to be selective based on race, gender, age, political affiliation, favorite color, preference for vi vs. emacs or any other non-job-competency-related basis whatsoever.

Comment Re:Wrong Title (Score 1) 499

Let me make the question a little clearer: "Have you ever belonged to an organization that is trying to kill me?" According to you, that's none of my business.

The difference is that it's a government, and you're not. Natural persons have a right to live; governments do not. If [a critical mass of] people are trying to overthrow a government, it's probably because it's become tyrannical and therefore deserves to be overthrown!

(Before you try to tell me I'm wrong, you should note that the Declaration of Independence uses exactly the same argument.)

Comment Re:Wrong Title (Score 0) 499

I advocated a "revolution" by absolute and unflinching non-participation in all government interactions.... For many reasons, this became a giant mess for me and I ended up a target. It started off quite subtle and juvenile... but ultimately ended up with things that I do not believe were legal to do to a person in the least.

You don't want to interact with government, but you want it to provide legal protection to you?

Comment Re:Wrong Title (Score 2) 499

the Libertarians or the Greens, which have completely opposite views on almost every issue.

On the contrary, the Libertarians and Greens agree on several fundamental principles:

  • Free speech as an absolute right (i.e, no bullshit "free speech zones")
  • Strong support for other civil rights (much stronger than the Democrats or Republicans, which are both authoritarian)
  • Reduction in scope of Federal government / more localized control
  • Non-aggressive / less interventionist foreign policy
  • More inclusive ballot access / abolishment of rules that favor the two-party system

IMO, the two "major" parties have gone so far off the totalitarian/fascist deep end that the civil rights issue alone should be enough to sustain a Green-Libertarian coalition!

Comment Re:Hangouts is, in turn, part of plus, right? (Score 1) 162

This! I've actually been using Google Voice with VoIP and that exact T-Mobile plan since last fall. Google Voice + Talkatone (via the XMPP access) worked great until Google disabled it back in the spring, and Google Voice + CSipSimple + a cheap VoIP provider has worked somewhat less well since then. (I wish Google hadn't left people like me in the lurch, and had delayed disabling the API until this new Hangouts functionality was ready, but it's a free service so what are you gonna do...) Hangouts 2.3 isn't showing up in the Play Store for me yet, but I'm excited to see if it works at least as well as Talkatone did.

(However, I'll be keeping my third-party VoIP plan too, for now, since a) I prepaid for a year of service and b) I need it for my ObiHai ATA anyway.)

Comment Re:Well, we really should be at that stage by now. (Score 1) 491

Nuclear power has already been tried on a merchant ship. The problem is the manpower to operate it just doesn't scale well to something as small as a ship.

Sure, when the reactor in question is operated using 1950s-era dials and valves and shit! But you'll have to do more to convince me that what you say still holds true today, with modern computer control.

Comment Re:All the EU wants is a continuous flow of money (Score 2) 96

The people deciding to bring the suit get paid either way. In fact, the existence of the suit is more "work" which therefore justifies a larger budget for their department (whether they win or lose).

The only way to fix it would be for the people in charge of the budget to withhold funding for frivolous lawsuits, but A) they don't really care anyway, B) separation of powers means they might not have the authority to decide which lawsuits are frivolous, and C) if they cut the prosecutors' budget they'd look "soft on crime" and lose the next election.

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