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Comment Re:videogames are like #3 or lower on that list (Score 1) 1168

2007 saw 613 fatal firearms accidents, and over 15,000 hospitalizations. http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/leadcaus10.html http://webappa.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/nfirates2001.html

Had there been perfect response by armed teachers at every event this year, at most 37 deaths would have been prevented, though that's the upper bound of somehow stopping them before they even start. I don't care to speculate on how many accidents would be added by having firearms in classrooms. There *will* be moments of carelessness.

Your macho fantasy world isn't the true world.

Comment Re:Gingrich & Huckabee Weigh In (Score 1) 1168

Bans aren't needed. Require trigger locks,and that they be stored them unloaded, and keep the ammo separate (and locked). Accidents drop hugely as do suicides (yes, you can defeat the system, but suicidal ideation tends to pass quickly, especially if you're futzing with a lock you don't have the keys to), Your base rates of gun related injuries and death drop. And the base rate totally overwhelms felon-on-non-felon murders and ill people who feel the need to shoot up the world.

Comment Re:Just say no ... (Score 2) 221

You don't have to trust, you just have to make corruption too expensive. Count in small batches, on site, at close of voting, with volunteer observers from every person on the ballot. It works, it scales, and it limits the effectiveness of co-opting a few individuals, unlike *anything* to do with electronic voting.

Comment Re:10x the population (Score 2) 500

The point is that you really don't have to trust the scrutineers: every party represented on the ballot has the right to have an observer present during the counting. Since each ballot box has relatively few ballots (500 or so), the count is quick. If your party can't muster a volunteer per 500 voters, you have deeper problems than vote fraud.

Comment Re:Alright, I'll play. (Score 4, Funny) 673

Grishnakh strong! Grishnakh no sissy under baggage load! No, not the whip!

Um, ok. Every week makes a difference. Number of connections makes a difference. I find it makes even more of a difference when travelling in Europe, where they frequently weight (and weight-limit) carry-on bags.

Yes, one pound makes no difference when it's "once in a while". It's a different story when you're always on the road.

Comment Re:l2history (Score 4, Insightful) 675

There is no difference between offensive and defensive weapons in the nuclear age. Ideologues quickly forget that balance is what kept us all from getting nuked for 30 years. Anything that moves that balance is a threat with the offensive capability. Given how trigger-happy the US has become I can certainly understand the traditional enemy's belligerence in the face of an increase in "defense" systems deployed near their borders.

Comment Re:Maybe I'm Understanding This Wrong (Score 2) 465

10:1 says that once the (alice->victor | bob->victor) delay is longer than the speed of light delay from alice->bob the effect vanishes. The result seems consistent with causation being an effect at slower scales than the speed of light, which comes back to the basics of modern physics: Everything is goofy when you get near C.
Transportation

UK Green Lights HS2 High Speed Rail Line 329

An anonymous reader writes "The United Kingdom has given the green light to the first phase of its proposed High Speed Two train line. In response to environmental concerns, the route for HS2 will now include extra tunneling in the first 90 miles, so not to disrupt the natural beauty of the English countryside. The first phase will connect London to Birmingham and could be functional by 2026."

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