"And here's why it matters to you even if you ride a granola-powered bike to work: I think this is a confirming instance of what I've been arguing for years, that the marketplace for ideas, inventions, and intellectual property is far less efficient than most people think it is."

This isn't about parking, except as an example of the problem.

I don't think you bothered to do more than skim the summary, if that. Although to be fair, the summary could have simply said that good apps are getting drowned out in white noise of not-so-good apps because the review/curation system in the app stores is completely ineffective.

It's not duress. It isn't "if you don't sign this you're fired", but instead "if you go away quietly and promise not to sue us we will give you a bunch of money, plus we'll let everyone think it's your idea so you can tell your next employer whatever you like".

Obviously you're free not to accept the deal, and often that's a tactic during negotiation of the package, and they won't fire you unless they can legally do so. At that point the writing is on the wall anyway, and sooner or later you are going to part ways. At least with a package you get money, the company avoids litigation, everyone wins.

Generally speaking when you want someone to resign but lack the legal means to fire them, you offer them a severance package to so that they'll decide to leave on their own. The terms usually call for non-disclosure of the deal elements (or possibly that there was a deal at all), and also some kind of legal protection for the company. Nothing illegal about that.

QFT. I rent out a property and screen my tenants carefully. If I learned they were subleasing to random Internet strangers it would not be ok with me.

This move has nothing to do with controlling their citizens and has everything to do with their continued manipulation of their currency. RMB is very tightly controlled by their government and they have a model that's working for them.

4/1. Pray that it's gone on 4/2.

If he opposed Prop 8 he would have been in support of gay marriage, not opposed to it. Prop 8 was a California constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman. I assume he was in support of Prop 8 and not opposed to it as indicated in the summary.

The method is new. Most (all?) current systems use the lane departure warning system and steering wheel input to determine if the driver is drowsy, but they do not put a camera on the driver themselves. The current system on my Ford doesn't seem to work very well.

I used education as an example, but there are many others. Helping with a down-payment for a starter home is another. Or perhaps they need some seed capital for a purpose I can't predict.

Let me make sure I understand your argument:

1) Caring about and providing for your family is the same thing as rape, theft, and murder.
2) Every child is nothing but a burden to society. Or was it just mine in particular?
3) No one should go to college unless everyone can go to college. When I die everything should be taken from my family to further that goal.

Did I get that right? You're an idiot. Bye.

You seriously read it that way? Of course I care about others. That is my responsibility as a human being. I care about my family more than strangers. That is my responsibility as a husband and father. It's also human nature.

Tell you what, you sign up to put my kid through the college of her choice, help her with her first home purchase, generally make sure he has a better life than I do, and make sure my wife doesn't lose her home without my income, and in return I'll happily let the government take whatever they want from what I've managed to scrape up. No? Then fuck off, you sanctimonious prick.

I was going to respond but you did a much better job than I would have.

Because building for my family's future is one of my primary motivators. I'm not just in it for myself. If I die I want my kids to receive the same education they would if I were still alive. The government already takes half of what I earn, and I will do everything legally possible to give them nothing more when I die.

I remember this, too, and it made an impression on me. I still use PowerPoint (or Prezi, or whatever) but spend a lot of time making sure the deck helps me deliver my message, instead of me just narrating whatever's on the screen. Typically I try to use fewer than 10 slides per hour and no more than two or three bullets per slide.

PPT can be a great tool when used correctly. Hardly anyone does, though. At least where I work.