Not quite true, I do run Linux servers on that windows 7 machine with VirtualBox.

"I am willing to bet that the fraction of AdBlock users that turn on the feature where some ads are allowed does not exceed 1%."

That's why they made the option opt-out: it is on by default. Most posters here probably know or can find out themselves how to switch it off, but they are guessing (hoping?) most won't.

The windows 7 I installed was pre-activated when I downloaded it from the Pirate Bay. Much easier. I don't know if I could legally downgrade from the windows 8 the system had preinstalled but piracy was so easy that I didn't bother to find out.

I don't know about other EU countries, but in The Netherlands employers can ask for a "declaration about the behaviour" of the applicant. That's a document the government issues, and the employer has to indicate what kind of possibly sensitive things the job requires, like working with children, working with large sums of money, with sensitive/secret information or with dangerous substances. If you're convicted for hild abuse you still can get such a document for working in a bank, but not for a job in childcare (and in childcare the employer is required to ask for such a declaration). If you're convicted for bank fraud the opposite, you are still alowed to work with children.

That's all most employers can ask, and most won't ask it because if they indicate the job does not require to work with anything like that the declaration will always be given and it's a waste of money and effort. Employers can ask beyond this of course, but I've never eard of it happening and I even think you are legally alowed to lie, the same like an employer isn't alowed to ask if you're pregnant but if he does and you lie a court will not alow the contract to be broken for that.

Well, it's not that different from me (non-US citizen) receiving DMCA requests. If I mail them back that I don't care about laws that are not valid in my country some Americans seem unable to understand why I refuse to take action.

I guess the prosecutor losing his job for making a mistake would be the biggest news. People get arrested for child porn all the time, but prosecutors personally feeling the consequences of their invalid actions - now that would be big news.

It IS already happening in the USA.

Yes, I'm also switching to more privacy-friendly search engines. It can go quickly - remember AltaVista when Google came up?

That new search engine has to be in a free country however. The US gives in too quickly when bribes, I mean campaign money, is offered by media companies.

Yes, a browser plugin that removes the first boxed ad results would be sufficient (for now).

Fortunately The Pirate Bay has its own search function. As have most other torrent and warez sites.

"The United States will resist all efforts to give "any person, entity or nation" control of the Internet"

Unless the Holy Copyright or Holy Patents are at stake of course. Then the US will (ab)use all its power to force their wiew down everyone's throat.

The money doesn't expire, it is written on the card. That was done as an insurance against network failures. That's why when the first cards got hacked the saldo could be increased with a RFID writer. The card does expire after several years though.

Creditcards are generally seldom used in The Netherlands because our own banking cards charge much less costs. Don't expect to be able to pay with a credit card in most shops, especially outside the tourist areas. Cash is king.

For some bankers and other money-grabbing "managers" I would say it is far to little.

Ah, the followers of fuhrer Geert Wilders are reporting in. For the non-Dutch readers, his main (and nearly only) party program is that everything that goes wrong is the muslims fault.

The big advantage of the phone-only model is that it keeps Whatsapp nearly spamfree and it prevents conversations where people with complete keyboards outtype me too much and then complain I can't keep up with their typing.