Shouldn't this have been required when the federal government first loaned them the money? Who F'd that one up?

But while the comp is still under warranty? Let's assume that's three years, max... I don't think that's enough tar to justify their equivocation. Apple is still being ridiculous. A warranty is a warranty, and if Apple had put a clear statement in the warranty documentation at purchase, that would be fair.

No, what it actually needs is two $20,000 loans, both repaid before you even break ground.

Bricking all of Time-Warner's faulty modems for them just might be classified as "virtuous". If the end-user weighs such situations as the ones you listed against having their identity stolen, I think they'll choose the former. I'll illustrate with an allegory:

You are about to step into a cross-walk and someone bumps into you before you can walk into the road. Just then, a car goes by at 40 mph. If you happen to be visiting another city or country, it's likely that you'll check for your wallet after the interloper leaves. But after careful thought, you'll find that you're happy to have that moment of uncertainty instead of being the victim of vehicular homicide.

As an aside, it behooves me to point out that I'm biased: I think (reasonably) that Time-Warner is a fucking cesspool of a company...

Go cry about it, Shill Queen. Even while Sony pulled their greasy tentacle back from the root kit debacle, they still find ways to make war on the public for sharing their media. The PSP Go is a clear example: Proprietary retailer? Go ahead and tell me the execs didn't get a chubby over this pile of shit. And, sure, proprietary cables are everywhere, but there's no excuse for perpetuating that annoying trend.

Microsoft gets their share of abuse on Slashdot too - a lot of people here probably have a penultimate goal in life to take M$ down. So quit whining and go play with your damn Betamax.

Stanislaw Lem, "Peace on Earth"

You only have the tip of the iceberg, here. The truth of our current landscape in research is that all animal models are grossly inadequate for a complete understanding of human physiology.

Even chimpanzees exhibit millions of minute differences in gene structure and chemical pathways that add up to millions more possible reasons for experimental outcomes.

So really, every simulation is going to fall short of giving scientists a fully dependable conclusion.

Sun may have some current research that will produce valuable results down the road. Especially since they consider their stock grossly undervalued. I wouldn't be surprised to see IBM come back with another offer - they've tasted the bitter fruit of a lost opportunity before...

So, if you're a zealot from the middle, does that make you right? ...And is it right for a zealot for the middle to spread FUD in the corners?

Looks to me like both crews did their jobs well... too well.