I have been to Europe many times. I like it there and might even think about moving to Germany if it wasn't for my conscience not letting me subject new coworkers to my horrible American accent on a daily basis. But by dominance, I do not mean strict military oppression. It's all about the dollar and economies and the Euro has enough troubles and the EU fractured enough that there is no need for any military against them. Instead we use our military as leverage for them against others in many cases so they will fall on our side. The only reason the US was involved in Tunisia is because Europe discovered it couldn't run large operations there without NATO/US resources. When push comes to shove we'll use our military like we did in Iraq. The only countries against our adventurism there were France and Germany, coincidentally the countries running the oil operations already for Iraq. In the end, they had to deal with it. Russia doesn't want to deal with it, but we'll probably not encounter them directly, but just sell arms to their enemies like we have been doing since the end of WW2. The idea of actually using the military for acquisition of land has pretty much been put to bed along with installing noble houses. Instead, militaries are being used to keep economies strong.

Which worries me some. The US is spending lots of money on the military and it doesn't seem to be making us money. Well, I'm sure it's making somebody money, but is the US coming out in the black? If we shrink our military, would our economy shrink with it, causing a lack of confidence which will cause it to shrink some more in a vicious cycle?

Those that would threaten US dominance.

I'd say it was a bit more complicated than that. The issues were not Germany's alone, nor that of the losers, nor even the occurance of the Great Depression. The entire 20's and 30's was a three way battle between the idealogies and factions of Democracy, Fascism, and Communism. Italy, Spain, Austria, and Germany fell to fasicsm before WW2 even started.Before they did, there was a see-saw battle in the streets. The foundations of the Nazi party gained prestige when they helped overthrown a communist coup in Bavaria. There was even debate in the US along those idealogical lines.

Microsoft is going to allow people with pirated copies of Windows to upgrade by essentially giving away pirated copies of Windows 10? They should just get it over with and give away a "play for free" version of Windows.

I be actual research into the history of the word will reveal a background of faux German, another example of which would be "der blinkenlights".

Both at work as desktops support and at home I think I've had more CD/DVD drives go bad than any other issues. Usually, it's just a matter of getting another stock one and plugging it in, but at home I use Mac Pros and the last two have gone bad (still have a Bauhaus CD stuck in my current computer).

My first job in Seattle was delivering pizzas in Bellevue. It's pretty much the easiest grid-like part of the Seattle metro and only got hard once you tried to find the specific apartment building you wanted. There are a few gotchas going from once side of 405 to another but the hardest part is asking if the address is for North or South and no knowing the location of 148th is like not knowing where Pine is in Seattle.

Then it's probably a good sign that they are trying to make it illegal, at least for certain demographics in certain states. If voting didn't have any effect, there wouldn't be so much effort to keep people from voting and to do things like gerrymandering. It's bad that such things are being done, but it at least hopeful indication that voting is worth it.

Most everybody ends up settling for shitty jobs, even in the big US coastal cities with hot startup scenes and flawless resumes. Thing is, in those big US coastal cities, you get some experience at a shitty job to put on your resume and get a better job fairly quick. In fly over states, you're stuck with the shitty job. I was dedicated enough to move out of those places and to civilization, I recommend others do too.

Ballsy or just stupid. Despite all the tests they are supposed to have taken on area streets, Seattle cab drivers seem outside their depth when going to anywhere outside of the core downtown and the airport. Several times I've got tired of them consulting road guides and talking to the dispatcher and just start giving directions: "Straight through the light, get on I-5, take the Olive St exit - this one right here!, left at the next light, take a right, stop next to that tree". I've never had similar situations in any other city in any other country (which is good because I can't always direct them).

No more trivial than just getting everybody back to earth with the data and samples. There are lots of tech not developed yet for a manned Mars trip. Long term space habitats for one as the trip there will take a long time. Landing is another as there is not enough air to air brake or parachute an too much to use rockets easily. There are articles on the subject by NASA people out there. That's why there are so many weird landing methods for past Mars missions and once you increase the landing craft to something people can land in, and the issues increase. Even then, any such attempt will require multiple landings that will all have to land with precision enough that they can support each other. Musk might get it done. But still, the issue is that a one way trip is just a red herring to make people think that it is possible. It's a solution to a problem that doesn't exist to lure people into thinking it's some magical solution. Simply put, getting the people back off Mars and to Earth is less of a problem than looking at any type of extended stay.

Living in Seattle, I have lots of friends that work at Microsoft. Typically, I get the impression it's actually a really nice place to work. The only thing people really care about it their own group and they are free to use their iPhones, ect. The true danger is not speaking ill of another group, or even your own, but rather then endless reorgs that happen without any sort of reason that the employees can tell, and getting your group downsized or dissolved because of them.

Amazon however. That company is supposed to be hell with an average employment time of 18 months before you leave or are fired.

Last I heard, OPEC isn't lowering production because Saudi Arabia said they weren't because they wanted to thumb their nose at Iran. OPEC wants to but effectively can't without Saudi Arabia's agreement.

I've been hearing about it since college (which was farther back than I care to admit). If you want to try it just google "make powdered alcohol" and look up the recipe. It's going to tell you to go on Amazon, buy some tapioca maltodextrin and some Everclear, mix, and sift. Ta da! Powdered alcohol. Experiment to your heart's content.

You could get even lighter and easier transportability by taking Everclear or some other near 200 proof alcohol and adding flavoring to add to your water. Palcohol is just the same thing that is bound to a powder, most likely tapioca maltodextrin. Similar process is already used in some cooking recipes. You can already make it yourself. It's not some neat way to make alcohol any lighter or more compact.