It's a slippery slope (because of all the blood).

If it is used to "predict future results" then the conversation may become "We need your parents to give X units of blood for you to get an A on the upcoming test."

Quote: Unless China is ruled by vampires.

I'd watch that TV show...

No, the comment moderation here is much better...

Anyway, I need to run, I've got an article about how to lower my auto insurance since I don't drive more than 40 miles per day (apparently it's a secret).

I use LED strip lights for lighting when camping. 2 300 LED strips don't take a lot of power, and I bring a custom 35 amp hour 12 volt marine batttery to power the system. I have saved a couple of thousand $$$s over the years not having to buy D batteries or propane canisters for lighting at the campsite.

600 LED is very bright, brighter than a traditional propane lantern.

We've used them in the house during power outages, lights up the first floor about as good as the regular lights (except for shadows since our electric lighting is all ceiling mounted).

Siri: I'm sorry, the data upload volume has exceeded capabilities, not all packets could be sent, residual data will need to be cleaned up manually.

Did people cut even further (with more increased rates)? Would be an interesting spiral...

Toto's do (start at about $300, but well worth it). They have a two stage flush, and 15/30 second refills depending on the stage. The only thing they suck at is... heavy dark matter on the back of the bowl. That's what the $1,000+ versions are pressurized...

During a large party it's nice to have a toilet that can move 4 people per minute through the bathroom line.

Great toilets, made in America. They get crazy expensive on the high end (they go all Japanese with digital controls and extra spray stuff, warm air, etc.).

I figured that "ache feet" was a logarithmic progression, the farther you walk the more it hurts (once it starts hurting), and it isn't linear.

Of course I didn't see how that would be related to irrigation. Maybe it's a term used by those who inspect long irrigation systems.

And of course I saw your response regarding auto-correct...

That would be an awesome app.

I wonder if they have a patent on the design. It would actually seem to be a reasonable patent in my opinion (structural support via a specific design).

Correct on the amount of food. The situation is actually an energy problem, the cost of transporting foods can be prohibitive.

Especially so if they have a short time frame to be consumed (healthy stuff like fruits and vegetables). And those food types are prized by first world consumers, so, from an economic perspective, those who can provide the best profit get the food.

America turns corn into energy. South America turns sugar into energy. How would you suggest minimizing that and also pay to move the food around the globe?

The market wins, not those who need food.

Check out Darwin's Nightmare. Terrible documentary about food distribution (great documentary, the content is of a terrible nature).

Fantastic book (not the best writing, but a great story). I took my CCW class with author, John Ross, and had him sign my copy.

Interesting Facts - John Ross single handedly got concealed carry passed in Missouri, paying for lobbyists out of his own pocket. Surprisingly, the legislature threw in the Castle provision (preventing civil suits if you kill an uninvited person in your home). As in the book, he actually owns a quarry which he uses as a gun range and he has quite a few Class 3 weapons (which you can shoot for the cost of ammo after taking his CCW class).

And further, I have asked myself, Would I want to be one of my grandparents.

My grandmother is upper 80's, she can no longer form short or medium term memory. Meds help with anger which was an issue early on. She needs a walker and can be coherent (while asking the same questions over).

Her husband is my grandfather, Wib, he turned 90 about a week ago (my son is named after him, their actual name is Wilbur but they will always been known as Wib). He's got his mind and gets around fine, albeit with considerable pain in the entire body. I don't like that he still drives, but it is a necessity where he lives. And he still works, although most of his customers have died off. It is his routine. And he loves his wife and would certainly perish quickly if she passed.

My grandmother wrote a letter to her grandchildren in the 1980s, and she said "these bones are ready for the grave." I found it when I was about 10. We talked about it, but I don't remember the conversation, just the phrase. Burned in my mind. She was in her late 60's at the time.

Kurt Vonnegut said, on the Daily Show, that he would have already committed suicide if not for how it would affect his grandchildren. He passed a couple of years later.

So it goes.

The decision regarding death's timing should be up to the individual (if possible, accidents and such interfere), with the decision based on his/her considerations of pain/quality of life and family and/or other obligations. Alzheimer's and Dementia are different stories, thus the need for living wills addressing mental situations (if you were no longer yourself, would you rather spend your funds on your care or helping your family financially?).

Soylent Green had it right, there should be euthanasia centers, 'tis a sad aspect of a civilized society, but it is civilized, allowing for self determination (with the same music and film as the movie, one of my favorite scenes in any movie). Keep in mind that the starving masses didn't choose to die, they continued to suffer. Fantastic movie.

As for society and being worthless (per the general society), that's a question of being/trying to be employed, but it has nothing to do with whether one should die. But worth with family is another situation, and is more important anyway (I don't care what society thinks about or values about me).

You are absolutely correct about life expectancy. At birth, per the Social Security Administration's actuarial tables, men have a life expectancy of 76.1 and women 80.94.

From there it never appears to go down (it is flat a couple of times, age 9-10 for both genders; add actual age and expectancy then diff over time). At no point is your full life expectancy, per standardized tables, at or below 75. At 75 the men and women life expectancy's are 85.89 and 87.77 respectively. Women are expected to live longer until age 116, at which point men and women have an equal life expectancy...

Here's the table: http://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/...

I haven't used an actuarial life table in a couple of decades, fun stuff.

And to be clear, the expectancy is from that age, so adding them is correct. Here's the full note:
Note: The period life expectancy at a given age for 2010 represents the average number of years of life remaining if a group of persons at that age were to experience the mortality rates for 2010 over the course of their remaining life.