Well put. GTE became Verizon Global Networks and was a very separate division. As it became integrated and FIOS was rolled out things became very difficult. They obviously chose a favorable way to request treatment, which should be expected. If they didn't have that support, they would have pulled FTTN and limited how much they were willing to spend going to the home. In the end, it would have set things back more.

But, the government should only allow a limited time monopoly for these services. Phase in competition over the infrastructure to encourage competition, higher levels of service, and lower costs.

The decision doesn't have to be binary.

The schools should be designed in a modular fashion that accommodates growth in 25%-35% increments. Unfortunately, that makes your first increment cost 30-50% more and doesn't save much in the future phases.

Because a classroom is unlikely to be utilized at capacity for its 50-year lifespan given fluctuating enrollment.

New subdivision built in year 1, year 4-5 the elementary school in the neighborhood has an enrollment boom, then a bust around year 10-14. The next boom isn't likely until the first families in the development move on and new young couples move in and have kids, which is likely around year 25. So, a trailer that is installed in anticipation of the boom can be demolished during the bust at the end of its life, and a new trailer can be provided for the next boom. Very efficient.

Unfortunately, the problem is that the trailers are never removed, and what was intended to be temporary becomes permanent.

Further exacerbating the problem is the fact that it is hard for schools to get money (because they often spend it poorly).

The Allies won WWII because the US had substantial natural resources *and* industrial production capability that was not damaged in initial volleys. Guerrilla warfare is different, which is why using "shock and awe" or "invisible hand" get tricky.

Ultimately to defeat "terrorism," you need to create cultural ties to societies that "hate our freedom." (Gag!) Education is a strategy, as are religion, charity, entertainment, and simple brainwashing. Immigration seems to have some effect, but not much.

The goal should not be for everybody to be best buddies, but to at least tolerate each other with *mutual* respect. To that end, it seems like Americans are in much better need of education than whomever else.

Maybe it is the heat, but it hasn't been a good week for clouds. Fire took out my cloud when an XO circuit killed my hosted DNS and subsequently my hosted website and "cloud" email. Different fire somehow took out one of our supplier's SIP trunks leaving them without phones.

Oh well... still have two 9's for the past 12 months...

No, the output of a panel is a function of the incident angle of light hitting it, as well as temperature. The peak number is "standard conditions." You convert from standard conditions to "equivalent hours" via the DOE's PV-Watts tool for a given location and installation/mounting type.

...into salt water at high temperatures.

SpaceX has an incentive to make it work, not a bureaucratic risk aversion.

When companies strategically recruit from other companies, it is an unbalanced position. When you have a need, you can afford (or at least justify) paying up 10% above market rate to get someone who will make a difference. That doesn't mean the employee is worth the 10% extra in general, but the real-time market value is higher.

Recruiting is a grey art. It isn't easy to balance what is fair when you are chasing someone who is content at their current job.

Well, it is if you just treat your employees as commodities, but that isn't a long term strategy for success.

To me what is clearly unethical is not interviewing or hiring people that apply for a job because they currently work for another specific company. Avoiding targeted recruiting is much harder for me to consider illegal.

If you want to pick a Bank of America symbol, go for 1455 Market, not 555 California! Nothing "important" was in 555; 1455 was carefully guarded by 1 South Van Ness which actually had a BofA sign, but no real operations.

1455 is now the home of Square, among others, and the abandoned buildings adjacent were rebuilt as domiciles for the tech elite... That building is the quintessential icon of the Silicon Valley bubble burst (in SF), helipad and all!

(OT 555is Ha Ha Ha in Thai...)

Because people are inherently bad with managing money. A lower sticker price increases sales.

And, for the people that can manage their money, there is no material savings by not using the subsidy if you need to use ATT or Verizon.

Hey, I prefer to call them Drunkles, or squnks in a pinch. Alcohol and sketch tablets make strange bedfellows.

Agree on storage cost. I have an Air with 128GB (64 was marginal for my need when I purchased it), but I can't justify a mini for the sole reason that storage and cellular access costs outweigh the benefits of a smaller device for some of my needs.

FaceTime camera resolution is dramatically better on the last two generations, but it can easily be a 3-year upgrade cycle. Besides shattering my screen, my biggest motivation was charger compatibility with my iPhone. Too many cords...

I challenge anyone to find a US hospital in their health plan that can do a better job than Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok.

I don't know... My little cabana on a small island in the gulf of Thailand was a pretty nice place to work from. My hourly rate might have been cut nearly in half, but at 8am local time I would say I needed to leave the conference call because the long tail boat was too loud taking me out for scuba diving...

I lived on about $1,000 per month, and if they wanted me back in the states for a week it was entirely on their dime.

Cost of living adjusted I still do better today, but I don't get to go diving every day.