And this was a specifically 'British' comment to the people of Great Britain about the British government "chipping away".

Besides, the British "subjects" have been the targets of Royal and Governmental condescension for 1000+ years. If they were addressed as 'citizens', why, they couldn't begin to understand what was being said to them!

Now THAT'S condescension for you, Slappy!

You are all living in The Village.

You are all numbers. You are less than nothing to those whom you allow to rule over you and oppress you.

You have a choice to make.

You can be free men and women. You can leave The Village anytime you wish.

All it takes is for you to say, "No. I won't!" to the police when they tell you that you cannot take pictures in public. When they 'kettle' you and tell you to obey their orders.

When they shoot innocent people in the back and tell you to move along.

All it takes is for you to say, "No. I won't!" to the government when they coddle the people that helped bring about the global financial crisis, and tell you to accept it.
When the government colludes with dictators because it is in the best interests of the government, and they tell you to mind your tongue, lest you get labeled a 'troublemaker'.

You can choose to remain numbers and remain in The Village, or you can choose to be free men and women.

The choice is yours.

Choose wisely.

Reading Slashdot.

How about you?

In other words, you're just a lazy fuck, sitting on his ass, while the country goes to hell.

Got it.

As previously stated:

This IS a participatory democracy, you know.

Feel free to participate by instructing the Hired Help in D.C. as to your wishes for how your tax dollars are spent.

Feel free to participate by running for office locally.

"I know my taxes aren't buying any type of civilization in the middle east, despite the trillions going there. In fact, my tax dollars are doing the exact opposite by creating anarchy, pollution, death, and destruction. If those things are the hallmarks of civilization, well, you can keep it."

This IS a participatory democracy, you know.

Feel free to participate by instructing the Hired Help in D.C. as to your wishes for how your tax dollars are spent.

Feel free to participate by running for office locally.

Randroids with mod points. As inevitable as death and taxes.

NO MORE CALLS! We have a winner!

You really are the poster boy for Asperger's, aren't you.

You are bitching about not being able to do something on devices you have admitted you don't own and have no intention of owning.

You gripe that you have no freedom when it comes to not being able to do something on devices you have admitted you don't own and have no intention of owning.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

What next? Lamenting of the terrible loss of freedom you are suffering because you can't play a cassette tape on a portable CD player you have no intention of ever buying?

Untwist your panties , and stop using the Internet. You're getting your stupid all over everything.

"Taxation is legalized theft, no more, no less."

Say the person who benefits from the city fire department, police department, highway department, health department that enforces sanitation and public health regulations, the water and sewer, departments that provide safe water and take away sewage, the diverse Federal departments that ensure clean safe food, safe medicines, keep aircraft from colliding in mid air, will carry a letter from coast to coast for you in a few days for less than half a dollar, etc etc etc.

Don't bother to quote Ayn Rand or any other libertarian bullshitter at me. The ONLY quotation that matters is this:

Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.: 'I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilization.'

I imagine that you're equally unhappy that you cannot get a command line on your other appliances, like the DVD player or the dishwasher.

Why, I can just hear you now:

"Help, Help! I'm being repressed!"

Hey, I can't get DOOM to play on my microwave oven. You don't see me whining about it, do you?

WAIT! Did you just actually say that you cant access a command line in Mac OS?

You DO know about Terminal?

Obviously not.

You know, if Dad finds out you've been using his computer to troll Slashdot, you're going to lose your video game privileges for a month!

Convenience does not equal freedom.

Unless, of course, you are being held against your will and forced to use Apple hardware.

ARE YOU being held against your will and being forced to use Apple hardware?

If not, then STFU about "freedom". It makes you sound like an arrogant, entitled asshole, bitching at the poor schmuck behind the counter at Starbucks about how she messed up the design in the foam on your latte.

"But it's simply not worth the loss of freedom to me."

This is exactly why people like me mock people like you.

You confuse "freedom" with "convenience".

Now go to your room and think about what you just did!

We really DO need moderation tags for OS bigots like you.

Sub-par UNIX OS, you say? I've not seen any indication of that. Of course, I only began using UNIX some 20+ years ago, so WTF do I know?

SO don't use an Apple-Approved method to mess with the iPod. Apple will not send Enforcement Gundams to stomp you computer and home into tiny little pieces.

Indeed, don't use Apple products at all, if they so vex you. I am given to understand that Microsoft has some kind of music playing device. I've never seen one in the wild here in Boston, so I cannot comment on the actual reality of such a thing.

And this is really the heart of the matter. No one is forcing you or anyone else to buy or use any Apple product. You can go your entire life without spending one cent on anything from Cupertino.