I shouldn't have left the impression that this instructor taught us to block but default. At that time MCSE didn't teach that. And he didn't either. We all discussed it over coffee among other things, like the stupidity of naming your intranet 'msft.net'. That was taught at one time.

IIRC, we discussed this in MSE classes, the same ones where the instructor assured us we need not register a domain name for our internal network (!), and agreed that despite the lack of information from Microsoft, It was worth it to block SMB ports from the public networks. As well as others, such as SQL Server (1433/1434 at a minimum), AD (135,389,5722, and the list goes on), and other services we need not expose to nor listen on for external traffic, we rapidly got to the point where the reasonably responsible admin blocked by default, opened only what was necessary, and then directed these to the proper hosts inside the network.

This is slightly older than the Y2K bug. And still not really fixed? Microsoft's choices here have always come back to haunt them. NetDDE, OLE, the HTML viewers, and this, all making Outlook once the premier distribution method for viruses and all form of malware,

Interprocess friendliness has its cost. Ease of use goes both ways. The crooks are happy to take advantage of your features.

"There's a reason why a pound of pasta costs $0.99 while chicken goes for $1.99 a pound"

This isn't just an apples v oranges argument. Pasta chicken. One is a plentiful source of carbs, the other a plentiful source of protein.

What was your comparison intended to illustrate? If you meant to point out that protein is expensive, yup, but compare chicken and soybeans, or rice, and then we can have a more useful comparison.

"Have you ever actually owned a dog or a cat? Every one I've ever had eventually developed problems with their teeth as they aged, usually ending with the tooth in question needing to be pulled."

And what did you feed them? I fed my cats commercial foods, and they are really, really not very good for them, dental issues being only one of several.

My first cavity was found when I was 21, my second when I was 30. But I was born before sweets were so universally available, and corn sweeteners were everywhere. Also before diet soda was plentiful or tasty...

How did cultivating maize impact the Mayans' health?

It's a small club.

Just go all the way and name it the XR4Ti...

Using qualifiers such as 'can't easily do that' or 'makes life harder' reinforces my complaint. This doesn't prevent anything, just makes it hard for the little guys. States can still apply resources and break in if they want.

One of those words does not mean what you hope it means.

Forcing HTTPS on every website is the current scammage. For this, I get to go out and buy a cert, mess with the server, and all for a Joomla site that doesn't have any internal security issues fixed by HTTPS.

What is this fixing, again? Wordpress add in vulnerabilities, or certificate authorities revenue?

As if 'nobody' conspires with the Postal Service to do the work in the sorting center.

Smart people get rich at an alarming rate. Maybe we need to stop them from being so smart? Or at least so industrious?

Seriously, where do you go to school, Columbia? Bates?

Huh.. What DO batteries do?

Population growth as a global threat is entirely discredited. Point to some nation where pop growth is noticeable, and you'll find a nation where food supplies are hampered by war, dictators, or racial strife. Food on our planet, even in Africa, can be produced in abundance. Getting it to those who need it, especially in refugee camps, is the first problem.

And Africa seems to have more than its share of strife. The UN has certainly punted on that, and the US should rethink its policies. The list is long enough to find at least one conflict to address.

Pop growth is an old and cheap canard. Stick to global climate change. That scam is pretty much still being pushed hard.