The statement "If you want peace prepare for war" says it all. Damn near every dispute or argument of any importance over the past 5000 years has been solved by military force. Russia did not bale out the US over Syria it was the lack of domestic US political and military support that nixed any bombing plans. US inaction in this case has emboldened others who no longer need fear US involvement. Without a direct attack on US interests the US public will never support a military action no matter how much suffering takes place. I am not advocating US involvement I am just commenting on the effects of doing nothing. Personally I am glad the US is disengaging from these areas of non-ending conflict. The middle east is already on it's way to a catastrophic and generational war without end, Russia is free to assume control of it's former client states, and China can continue to take over the south pacific oceans and islands. The warlords in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and various African countries have a free hand to commit atrocities of the worst type because they have nothing to fear from their own governments and outside assistance is disappearing.

Without the war mongering Air Force and Navy or the military in general most of the technology you enjoy using today would be non-existent or significantly less advanced. Technology advances in general have been accelerated ever since the Chinese, Persians, Greeks, and Romans began trying to conquer the world. Civilian companies working on space technologies today are all taking advantage of work pioneered by the warmongers to advance science and make profits. They have all benefited from the trillions of dollars spent by governments who put no price tag on one upping their potential adversaries to build the better mousetrap. And while NASA might have budget problems the military sure doesn't which is where new material sciences, advanced computer technologies, and new propulsion systems are being created.

"Google is well on its way to becoming the new MS "

Google has already become just like MS and Apple. They all rank at the top of the most successful companies in the world. These companies have been an integral part of the PC and Internet technical revolution. A revolution that has changed the world of communications and commerce. You can question some of their methods but you should try and balance the good and bad when forming your opinions on their "evilness". None of these companies have ever claimed to be philanthropic organizations.

Secret courts? If you know about them how are they secret? FISA courts have not been secret since it's inception. And why should the US surrender it's capabilities just to give Russia or China an advantage of any type? All this hyperventilating about foreign intelligence gathering is being done without putting the entire matter in it's proper context. Without context all the arguments against the US are hypocritical and meaningless.

Sane people all over the world eh? That's about 10 people tops so they are definitely a minority. If you are upset about the international intelligence operations please keep in mind that spying on foreign competitors and adversaries is a time honored tradition going back to the time of the Pharaohs. It's a time honored rule that countries have no friends they only have interests. And thankfully US interests in other countries are finally taking a backseat to it's own domestic interests. The narrow minded individuals complaining about US foreign intelligence operations should try pulling their heads out of their asses for a few minutes and put any arguments they have in context and that context includes acknowledging that the US does not operate in a vacuum and the US Constitution and Bill of Rights are not international in scope and while some of the domestic ones have taken a beating they are still in place and are being practiced everyday of the week. If you think international espionage should be banned from existence then go get Russia, China, and pretty much every other country on the planet to eliminate all their activities and then you can berate the US if they don't jump on the happy train. Until that magical day arrives you will just need to persevere and stoically face the mighty winds of injustice and unfairness blowing around the world. There are support groups that can help you through times such as these so remember you are not alone!

Alright a show of hands. Who thinks changing telecom providers will keep the NSA or any other international intelligence service from achieving the same level of access they achieved with Verizon? If the Germans are upset about being spied on they should remember what happened the last time the international community took their eye off the ball when keeping tabs on Germanys government and military.

I have made a very good living working with the Wintel platform. I have never been a zealot preaching one platform over another because in the end I really don't give a shit. Software development has provided stable and high paying employment for 28 years. Prior to Wintel I earned my living working on Unix and C so of course I was appalled when trying to make the switch from Unix to Windows. However right about that time for $100 an hour I stopped my bitching and tried to make the best of it.

Software development requires balancing functionality and security with the amount of time and money you are willing to spend. Defining and enforcing internal basic safety related development guidelines on every project can help reduce the risk. Software has a relatively short shelf life. By the time you totally secure something you will be lucky if the software is still relevant. We have operating systems over 25 years old that are no where near 100% secure because the technology environment the software runs on has never stopped changing. Plus you usually start adding new functionality and correct functionality bugs and other short comings immediately after each release. It's not as bad today as it was in the late 80's and 90's when new operating systems, hardware, and development platforms were being rolled out on what seemed like a weekly basis. I think people are trying to do their best today and the security awareness has increased where once upon a time it was almost a non-factor when organizing development projects. Most of todays cyber crime exploits take advantage of atrocious system administration, social engineering, and inside information. Companies that tightly restrict or even forbid internet access from within the corporate network can drastically reduce or even eliminate vulnerabilities if you also tightly restrict the use of external storage devices. Stuxnext is one of the most publicized hacks and it was delivered on a USB drive but it was hardly the first or last example of this type of attack.

There are states where the courts have invalidated or at least stayed the application of a law pending further appeals. The gay rights issue is probably the most recent as well as the immigration laws and statutes passed in Arizona.

Yea I can see exporting bull dozers, cranes, and dump trucks is an ecological disaster just waiting to happen. And rest easy the US never sells the really top of the line weapon systems capable of killing people individually or wholesale when required. And without the US providing the "design phase" none of the other countries would have much to build now would they?

Depending on what metrics you chose to use the US is still at or near the top of international rankings. The U.S. still remains the largest producer of advanced technology products, SO I say the US appears to have some manufacturing capability and that capability is growing stronger because the surge of domestic gas and oil is bringing down energy costs. There are foreign companies that are in the process of moving some of their manufacturing to the US because of the reduced energy costs and reduced shipping costs are balancing the higher labor costs. The only advantage China has had in growing their exports is cheap labor. Their economy was certainly not built on quality and innovation. Their success has resulted in it's workers agitating for more money plus they now have completion from the other emerging South East Asia countries who can match their labor costs. China has had to manipulate it's currency to keep it's export costs down and attract business but there are limits to the manipulation.

In this particular case the treaty is for defining the amount of interference the government will be allowed to inflict on both private and public companies. And the "Peoples Business" is whatever the loudest subgroup of blowhards believe it is at the time. And as the number of people involved in any decision making increases the collective IQ of the group decreases exponentially.

"number of indications " ,"pretty sure ","unsubstantiated-but-not-inconceivable rumor","rumors flying around about an informant "
Sounds like enough proof to me.

He was talking about the US being saddled with paying for the lions share of the post-war recovery efforts.

Maybe I wasn't clear. Perhaps I should have said aggressive recruiting tailored to the specific profession and skill set. Going after a teaching job is totally different from going after a high end engineering position. And for the record someone's ability to ace technical questions certainly does not mean they automatically get a job. You can gauge a persons technical abilities with only a few non-specific questions. Sorry about the confusion.