The government-it industrial complex is controlled by the same sort of corrupt relationships that the military-industrial complex. Come in to that situation with new ideas and you will get slapped down by entrenched interests intent on making use of networks of people moving back and forth between government and industry in order to create personal wealth. New ideas and new technologies only rock the boat.

The classic example is the PPACA web site. Hundreds of millions spent on something that would be a 5-10 million dollar project in a sane world.

Actually in terms of volume both are shrinking.

The problem with sapphire is that it's BRITTLE. Drop it and it will break. It's why steel is better than cast iron.

You aren't likely to drop a checkout scanner. Iphones though are regularly dropped.

The hardness is is great if you are worried ONLY about scratches.

Nonsense. The life expectancy in India is 10 years shorter than the US. It wasn't until just this year it was considered to be polio free.

There was a survey published in Nature showing belief in God is dwindling among scientists....

https://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek...

Typical theist baloney. Set up a false premise i.e. people have to have unquestioning belief in something and then argue therefrom.

Skeptics doesn't hold such a viewpoint. They work from evidence, not belief.

That's incorrect. Rational philosophies and even evolution provide non-theistic justifications for altruism.

It in fact looks now that altruism is a survival trait that is hard wired in the human brain through natural selection.

http://www.newscientist.com/ar...

Note: China is already constructing additional carriers. However compared to something like the USN Gerry Ford they are sorta lame.

> Was the water contested before the island was build?

Big time. The airspace above it too. The warlike history of the nations in this area is scary.

Current international laws are newcomers to this area where squabbles go back a long fucking time.

This is exactly the same profile as any other e-waste. I'm fine with treating LED bulbs as such.

It's not a quirk if pretty much every fukin language does it.

I still have my JRC NRD-525. Man that thing would pick up anything. Cell phones, baby intercoms, cordless phones, military radio, etc etc.

Too bad so much is encrypted now.

Yes, and what is the alternative? McCain?

DO YOU REALLY THINK HAVING THAT SENILE WAR MONGER WOULD BE BETTER?

If we had elected McCain/Palin we would be in far worse shape. Just call up the recent statements he's been making.

We would be at war in a dozen countries now had we elected him.

Far Side >> all of the above.

Umm if it had zero effective power it certainly wouldn't be a bully pulpit. In fact it wouldn't even be a regular pulpit.