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Comment Re:Really? (Score 1) 181

I don't disagree with your definition. However, with the Tesla, what is he innovating? There have been all electric vehicles prior to his. The technology he is using isn't being used differently than in those other vehicles. Yes, he is looking at building his own infrastructure, but that has been done before, too. That's not to dismiss what he is doing by any means.

I also agree that the hyperloop is invention, not innovation. While it appears similar to a train or monorail, it really isn't. I would also agree that Arthur C. Clarke was a visionary but only because of his ability to invent and/or innovate, not because of his ideas.

While being a visionary does include conceiving the possibilities, it is more than that. Jules Vernes is a visionary in that limited sense, but Musk is more than that. A real visionary is more than a dreamer but one whose dreams can change society. Take Japan and electronic devices. Many of those circuits were invented in the US by US engineers. Many Japanese companies were innovative in their production techniques to bring the cost down through mass production. However, only a handful of companies, not just Japanese were visionary on how those cheap circuits could transform society.

Take the iPhone - prior to Jobs, there were mobile phones and there were data organizers and even phones that let you put your calendar and get your email and the like. The reason the iPhone was so successful as compared with other smart phone type devices was not the innovations that Jobs made but the vision he had with what could be and then choosing the various innovations to make that vision a reality.

Somebody at Xerox was inventive and/or innovative in coming up with the mouse and GUI, but they didn't have the vision to see where Apple and Microsoft would take it.

So yes, Musk is unique in that he is both visionary and innovator/inventor, but it is the visionary part that makes him notable.

Comment Re:Rude relatives (Score 1) 447

Have you ever told them how these questions make you feel?

When the behavior got out of hand, yes I did. For the most part they respected it though I doubt their opinions actually changed.

Not to be a therapist, but it's not about changing their opinions, but getting them to quit trying to change yours. It's not that you are right and they are wrong or vice-verse, but instead they respect your views and you respect theirs. It's not about winning, but instead understanding.

Comment Re:How are they not a victim? (Score 1) 622

"If your local bank gets robbed and you can't get accessed to your funds for a week, aren't you still a victim?" - If your local bank gets robbed there is Federal Deposit insurance that protects you in the event of a loss. As long as you have less than $250,000 in each individual account you are protected against loss. These are two entirely different issues.

"Or are you proposing that people don't put money in banks?" - No. I am proposing that people take reasonable precautions. Putting your nude photos on a phone is akin to having a safely deposit box and leaving it unlocked.

"Like a bank, these online storage services have a fiduciary responsibility to their customers" - Online storage services do NOT have a fiduciary responsibility to their customers. Why? Because those customers are not paying for the service. At least those that are using the free versions of Dropbox, etc. Now, if they are paying for the storage then you would have a stronger argument.

Point 1 - yes there is, at least in the US FDIC insurance. That does not mean you have access to your missing money immediately. If you are making an expensive purchase on the afternoon your bank is robbed, you most likely will not have the funds available.

Point 2 - All of the safety deposit boxes I know of cannot be put back in an unlocked state. So, I don't think storing the pictures online is the same thing at all.

Point 3 - Weren't these photos taken from Apple's iCloud? I'm pretty sure the accounts in question were paid accounts, but even if the free version, there is a legal contract between the user and the company. It's called terms and conditions, but is still a contract (in which you even agree to hold them harmless). As such, they still have a fiduciary responsibility to protect your data.

Comment Re:Rude relatives (Score 1) 447

As for rude relatives, well, you can't choose your relatives, but you can choose whether or not to be around them.

I wish real life relationships were actually that simple. My parents have asked rude questions about marriage time tables, whether we would have kids, etc. Stuff that is none of their business and I find the questions quite rude. Sure I could break them off and say I'm never going to see them again but that seems a little extreme for a well intended but impolite inquiry. There are relatives I generally avoid but I'd need a better reason for my parents, in-laws, grand parents or sibling.

What I don't get is why everyone that has kids automatically assumes every other person wants to have them too. They simply cannot imagine that you wouldn't want the burden of raising another human being. I'm sure it's a lovely experience and all but people get really pushy and intrusive about it.

Have you ever told them how these questions make you feel? Saying "When you say things like that, it really hurts me and makes me want to stop visiting?" They may believe they are helping you, when in reality, they are hurting you, but unless you actually tell them, how will their behavior ever change?

Comment Re:Her argument is specious and sexist (Score 1) 622

She claims she had to take the pics because her boyfriend would look at porn if she didn't

So she is claiming her boyfriend put some sort of pressure on her to take these pics whether he did or not.

She is claiming to be the victim over and over in this narrative, first by her boyfriend, then by society, then by thieves.

When does the self-victimization end and how does pointing out the issues with one's choices constitute victim-blaming? Haven't we ever heard of constructive criticism?

Too bad you posted as an AC, or I would have modded you up. The real questions is why do these apparently successful young women feel the need to take these photos? It's okay for your boyfriend to beat off to your photo, but not somebody else's? That smacks of low self-esteem. The real question Vanity Fair and CNN and the like should be asking is why young women, particularly those that are apparently successful and wealthy, are succumbing to the pressure to take nude photos of themselves? Are they that insecure and starved for attention? If so, what does the culture do to contribute to that?

Comment How are they not a victim? (Score 2) 622

it's a long forgotten attribute called taking responsibility for your own actions. If someone wants to take nude photos of themselves then go for it. But don't go whining when the photos get leaked.

How stupid can these people be?

They take a nude photo and store it on a cellphone that can easily be compromised or stolen - mistake #1
Then then store the photo on some "cloud service", or email it, or otherwise create copies of the photo that they can no longer control - mistake #2
Choose weak passwords that can easily be guessed - mistake #3

These days it seems that everyone wants to be a victim. Why? Because it provides a built in excuse for fucking up. Cast the blame on someone else rather than own up to your own mistakes.

Actually, this is nothing new. In the days before digital cameras, the "thefts" occurred at the drug store or wherever the film was being processed. It was more difficult to disseminate the stolen pictures to millions of people, but they were stolen just the same.

As for being a victim, well, technically they are. In hind sight, was it foolish to store said photos on-line. Yes, it was, but that doesn't mean they weren't a victim. If your local bank gets robbed and you can't get accessed to your funds for a week, aren't you still a victim? Or are you proposing that people don't put money in banks?

Like a bank, these online storage services have a fiduciary responsibility to their customers. That responsibility was breached and the customers who had their photos stolen (nude or otherwise) were harmed by that failure. How are they not a victim?

Comment Re:Two things (Score 1) 622

First, I don't see how the hair splitting over what you have to do vs what you choose to do matters. You have the right to make choices, the right to not have your property and effects violated by others. The people doing it are wrong.

Secondly, I think the fact that we equate looking upon a nude photo with sex is a good amount of the problem here. Its really our own overprotective prudishness and nudity taboos that even give rise to this in the first place.

Nobody equates looking upon a nude photo with sex. On the other hand, there are many people who look at a nude photo and the person in it as an object of sex. Whenever we objectify people, we devalue them. The old expression about "Why buy the cow when the milk is free" when used in relation to people living together is a prime example. Once people, usually women, are an object, they aren't a person anymore.

Yes, the people who stole the photos were wrong. However, I don't leave my tablet on the front seat of my car, either. Just because the doors are locked, it is far too easy to bust a window to get at it. The thief doesn't have the right to my property, but if I really value that property, then I will take steps to secure it.

I am sure the individuals in this scandal thought they had done exactly that. The reality is that until better security is in place for on-line services, it's a simple matter of breaking the glass to get at the valued contents.

Comment It's not about victim blaming. (Score 2) 622

It's not about victim blaming, but instead learning from their experience to keep it from happening to you. The discussion isn't about what kinds of pictures should I or should I not have the right to take of myself.

Coeds living in college dorms have the right to enjoy the fresh air by opening a window. But, if that same coed is on the ground floor, that probably isn't a wise thing to do. How do we know this -- because in the past, it has led to very negative consequences. Are they to blame, no. In an ideal world, nothing bad would happen if one lived on the ground floor and left the window open or saved nude pictures of yourself on an online service.

But we don't live in an ideal world. That's why we don't let children play in the playground without supervision. That's why our houses and cars have locks. It's why we use passwords and encryption on files. We are not in an ideal world and there are less than noble people who will take what they want and hurt others in the process.

As such, this isn't about blaming the victims whose pictures were hacked. It is a wake up call that the security needed to keep private things private isn't at a level to guarantee safety. As such, like the coed on the ground floor, it is better to voluntarily give up a small right to protect ones self from having somebody else harm you. For those who have already been harmed by this, maybe their story will keep somebody else from being harmed. It's not about blame -- it's about learning to protect yourself.

Comment Re:Seems to be a contradiction (Score 1) 447

Yes, and? The cost of a PARTICULAR wedding will of course rise if there are more guests, but that is not what they are talking about when they are talking about the cost of a wedding. You can have a wedding with 200 people and only spend $10K, or you can have a wedding with 20 people and spend $100K.

I don't disagree. I am simply pointing out that the more guests the more expensive. So they can't both be valid. For instance, if the reception with 200 guests is held at the church hall, thus keeping costs down, is the effect because of the number of guest, the lower cost, or they are church goers? The study, as presented, doesn't have enough granularity to differentiate.

Comment Re:Or, just don't get married. (Score 2) 447

Obtain visiting rights at hospital and for couples with widely different incomes, filing jointly is better.

And then there's, of course, the lessening of the "When the hell are you guys going to get married?/Make an honest woman of her?" questions from rude relatives.

Funny, if you tell the nurse you are a family member or spouse, they let you right in. It's not like they do a background check. Plus, assuming the patient isn't comatose, they can give instructions to allow whomever in. As for taxes, unless only one spouse works or the other has minimal income, there is no real tax savings from being married.

As for rude relatives, well, you can't choose your relatives, but you can choose whether or not to be around them.

Comment Re:Or, just don't get married. (Score 1) 447

Unless, of course, you write a will. Granted, there's no solution for the tax issue. That's going to require the government to quit favoring certain lifestyles.

Actually, putting one's assets in a trust pretty much settles the tax issue and probate court. (Whether one has enough assets to justify the cost, is a different issue)

Comment Re: Really? (Score 1) 181

He is not the first to control the entire production chain. Ford did it early on. And the Pennsylvania Railroad before that. That part of what Musk is doing is not innovative.

However doing it with an electric car is new and is why he is visionary versus innovative. He has a vision of how this all could work and is executing that vision.

Put differently, innovative is past tense, it is based on what you have already done. Visionary is future tense and is based on what you see as possibilities.

I'm not putting him down. Being visionary is a much more difficult task to accomplish and see to fruition.

Comment Re:Really? (Score 2) 181

To be fair to the original poster, he has a point. California had all electric cars in the 1970s. Even the all electric Chevy Volt was available before the Tesla. So, while the Tesla is an improvement, it's not innovative. Now, his idea for the tube railway thing, that could be innovative. His plan for Mars isn't innovative, colonizing Mars has been talked about for decades. However, there is no doubt that the technology that will be created to make it possible will be innovative. Of course, until that technology is actually produced and put into use, there won't be,by definition, anything innovative.

So technically, Musk isn't an innovator, but instead a visionary.

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