FYI, I received your message on my homepage, just thought I'd let you know that spamming Slashdot then "anonymously" accusing me of being the spammer probably won't work, since, you know, your UID is different than mine.

Of course, assuming you're as clever as you think yourself, you already knew that, huh?

Seriously, dude, stop posting with this account before I'm forced to report you.

Not that I necessarily disagree with the likelihood that there's more to this story than we're being told, but most of the single mothers I've known throughout my life don't have the financial resources to hire a lawyer for the initial charge, let alone be able to afford an expensive appeal. Hell, most people I know.

"Justice" is expensive.

Which just goes to show the problem with letting dinosaurs whose understanding of technology is, shall we say, "limited," to make laws and decide how the scope of said laws are affected by technology.

Maybe we should be demanding our "representatives" impeach one or two SCOTUS "justices," and replace them with some younger people who actually know what the fuck they're talking about.

Between 1 and 7,000,000 people who read OP's post got the point.

I used to think this way myself, until I started paying more attention to my surroundings.

There are actually a LOT of pay phones still in service, you just have to know where to look for them; most of the ones I've seen as of late were in gas station parking lots.

First I thought my account got hacked; then I thought, 'have I been sleep-posting again?'

Then I looked at your UID.

While I appreciate that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, I'm going to have to ask you to stop impersonating me.

This being the second reply apparently presuming that I was referring to some sort of government-approved licensure process, I feel compelled to point out that I by no means meant to imply that either situation should require such approval.

I was merely pointing out the absolute fact that properly trained people are far less likely to misuse a tool than people who are not properly trained.

Proof in the pudding: the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937

I am GP, and I could not have said it better myself.

We, the American community, can train each other in the proper operation of the tool known as a "firearm" without the nanny-state looking over our shoulders, as we do with so many other specialized tools. To whit, if one wants to learn how to use the tools needed to build guitars, they apprentice with a luthier, not some government agent.

No, but sociopaths are.

A properly trained person is far less likely to try and use Dangerous Tool X when inebriated than an untrained person. Even so, we have to learn to accept that sometimes bad people do bad shit, but that's not a valid excuse for limiting the rights of the billions of not-bad people who don't do bad shit.

I'm sorry, what? That sentence makes no sense.

FWIW, 15 years ago we were saying that very thing about a lot of the technology that exists today - like drones, hypersonic aircraft, incredibly powerful computers that fit in a pocket, stem cells, government agencies with the ability to monitor every communication on the planet, rail guns, etc.

Slight Correction: I've never seen them mistreated by any other ordinary citizen. The legal system, however... But I'm pretty sure that's a problem no matter where you hail from.

I've lived on the Ozark Plateau my entire life, and while I know why it's considered part of the Bible Belt (lotta churches around here), I've found that it's not the cesspool of hatred and bigotry that people who have never been here claim it is. Yea, there's some bigotry, but most people tend to keep it to themselves, and in 30 years I've never, ever seen a minority person mistreated because of their race.

The Mennonites who spend every Saturday night downtown, holding a sign that says "Your cell phone is your call to HELL" in one hand and am iPhone in the other are about the worst I've ever seen, and those guys are mostly harmless.

Looking at the world today, and how those in power treat those who are not, do you honestly think humanity would be responsible with that kind of power? Or would powerful people try and manipulate the general public into supporting the elimination of "genetic abnormalities" that aren't directly detrimental to society at large, but rather represent a threat to their monopoly on power?

I.e., the oligarchs would absolutely love being able to stomp out dissent genetically.

Reductio ad absurdum aside...

To be fair, it would be pretty damn difficult to kill millions of people in seconds with a drone. At least, one that's not carrying a significant nuclear payload.

FWIW, I both support the 2nd Amendment and firmly believe that nobody is responsible enough to have nuclear weapons, governments included.