It sounds like the plan is for this ship to be the first of several, so the question is how much of that $20 billion investment is for upfront costs (design, shipyard upgrades, construction equipment) that will not be duplicated in subsequent ships. As it is, the first ship looks to probably at least break even or even make a decent profit (provided it works as expected) with bigger profits hopefully to follow. I am sure these numbers have been gone over very carefully. You don't make an investment this large on a whim.

I have driven that stretch in eastern Montana many times, and I have also driven that stretch of road in Texas. One thing the article doesn't mention about that toll road in Texas is that it was very expensive -- over $5 if I remember correctly. I tried it once not knowing the cost, and it was a lot of fun to drive on. But for that price, I can see why so few people use it, especially since you have to go out of your way. I was on my way from San Antonio to Dallas, so I didn't mind skipping Austin.

As for eastern Montana, the countryside is very open with gently rolling hills and long stretches of mostly straight sections of Interstate. Very often, you will not be able to see a vehicle in either direction (and just as often, no more than one or two buildings either), so the temptation to cruise is very high. Any wildlife can be seen from miles away, and there are very few trees. My only concern would be raising the speed limit on the western side of the state where there are more mountains and forests. There are some highways with 70 mph limits with limited visibility (both on the road and in the underbrush around) that makes for dangerous driving. As long as they take these things into account, it makes perfect sense. Montana already takes over a day's driving. just to get across.

Yeah, Microsoft made a really good desktop solution and then developed a really broken one. Take that, Linux!

The article says that most of the galaxies are moving apart, but the Local Group is moving closer. Why would the local group be different than the other galaxies? Are there other groups of galaxies that are seeing the same effect, or is the Local Group an anomaly?

Amen.

Absolutely. Actually, I believe that science works through God in that it is God who established and maintains the physical laws that we see. After all, where did they come from, and what keeps them running? So my faith in science is rooted in my faith in God and His faithfulness to keep the natural world around me running just like He did yesterday and the day before, etc. Science is therefore the study of God's faithfulness. He is so reliable that we can create formulas based upon it.

So long as humans are being tried and put up for justice, humans administer justice, humans define justice, and/or humans exist, I can guarantee this will absolutely never happen.

You are correct, but does that make it any less of a good goal? Should we not worry about corruption because there will always be corrupt people? Should we not try to help the poor because there will always be poor? If you simply give in to defeatism, you will always be defeated. To give up on living justly is to give into the worst forms of evil.

I think Asaph put it best:

“How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?
Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 82:2-4)

The most important thing that our nation needs at this point is true justice without partiality toward the rich, the powerful, and the connected. We need the laws that we do have to be enforced with fairness and impartiality. Given the name of your party, this should be your central focus.

Are there any home school groups in your area? Getting involved in a local home school group is a great way to get materials and resources that you don't personally have. Many groups offer courses in subjects like Chemistry for all of the families in the area in addition to group activities like choir or sports. Even smaller towns are likely to have some sort of home school group if you look for it.

Also, are you sure he doesn't read as well as his peers, or does he just not read as well as you remember kids his age reading? From my experience, if he is not reading as well as his public educated peers, there is something very wrong. My boys are home-schooled, and while they started a little "slow" for the first year due to the different approach, they rapidly moved beyond the level of most public school kids and are now pretty advanced for their age. Reading in public schools (or the lack thereof) is a joke with close to half of the students graduating not being able to read. This skill is far more important than any other because it is through reading that you can learn virtually anything else. Make sure that is a priority.

These words will likely haunt you when it is your turn to be harassed and strip searched. Don't think it cannot happen to you.

I have not played with the iPhone much, but compared to the Android, I would choose WebOS hands down. I love the interface and the multitasking abilities. It is my hope that open sourcing WebOS will give it some new life, because I really would like to see the OS continue. It holds a lot of promise, and I would hate to see the UI ideas go away.

Disclaimer: I am an HP employee, but I have no connection with the WebOS or TouchPad team at all. I was able to get a hold of a TouchPad through the employee fire sale, but other than that, I come at it as simply another user.

Agreed. I am not a Catholic, but even the Protestant churches need to do some house cleaning. However, the fact that someone else is a hypocrite does not absolve you from doing the right thing.

I meant to say that it leads to increased demand. The pervasiveness of pornography only works to fuel the problem, and as men (and women) grow accustomed to instant gratification (not to mention a taste for deviant behavior that most partners would not willingly do), they will turn to prostitution to meet their perceived need. As there are not enough people willing to perform to meet the demand, the market for sex slavery is born.

Yes, child pornography is illegal, but pornography itself leads to demand which fuels sex trafficking (both for women and children) as you can see from the statistics cited.

Also, there are many states currently where the only person who is convicted in the case of under-aged prostitution is the victim -- the young girl. For example, Texas just recently passed a law finally making it a prosecutable offense for pimping an under-aged girl. Before that bill was passed, the pimp would not have faced any charges.

And just because a law is on the books doesn't mean it is enforced. While the number of sex traffickers being convicted is growing, the vast majority of cases have yet to be prosecuted.

Actually a bigger dent (and one that would be extremely unpopular... especially on slashdot) would be to put an end to pornography. The correlation between sex trafficking and pornography is very strong as pornography fuels desire for the real thing. For example, you can read this article for references to many government and private studies linking the two. This interview with a government official who specialized in sex trafficking was also very interesting.

The statistics of sex trafficking in America are disturbing. There are an estimated 300,000 sex trafficking victims in the United States alone. Half of them are children (under the age of 18) and 90% of them are American citizens. The average age of entry into prostitution is 13 with an average lifespan once being trafficked of only 7 years. The average girl caught in sex trafficking is dead before she is even legally allowed to drink.

This is an important issue to me. I even wrote a song on the subject and have started speaking out about this problem to raise awareness. If you start to look into this world, prepare to be very disturbed by what you see.