I work in a school where a few people are eagerly trying to get more girls into coding. I think that's awesome. All kids, male or female, should know more about technology--if only to have a better understanding of the world in which they live. Unfortunately, in coding and/or electronics classes, the girls often dumb themselves down to be more appealing to the boys. This leads to the creation of girls-only classes, so girls can work without distractions. These classes ultimately get maybe one or two sign ups, and rather than admitting it's a lack of interest, people further the idea that girls don't KNOW they want to be in tech.

So, basically, down at this level we're saying all girls want to be coders, and if they don't make it, it's the fault of boys. Or the fault of teachers, who didn't figuratively beat them into submission and essentially force them into liking tech. Heck, when I was a kid I had a great arm and could throw with the best of them. My dad dreamed I'd play in the majors some day...but, at some point, he had to accept that sports weren't my thing.

And I already pay out the ass for cable. Just like I pay for Hulu Plus--but no, now I need Hulu Plus PLUS to be (almost) commercial free. And just like I pay 40 bucks for two movie tickets and two medium popcorns--just to sit through a dozen commercials, several stern warnings about those evil pirates, and then another six or seven trailers for movies I care nothing about.

I honestly don't give two shits who paid for the show. I know what I'm paying, and if I'm getting fewer ads shoved down my throat, GOOD.

I know little about guns. I shot one .22 at a shooting range maybe fifteen years ago and felt pretty "meh" about it...even if my friend "accidentally" aimed a loaded gun right at me that day (oops).

I do know a bit about cars though. I know I love them. I've owned a zippy little rally car for about ten years now. I've had no (zero, zip, nil, naught) speeding tickets in my life. So why do I "need" a fast car? I don't. Like I said, I love them. I love all cars, fast and slow. Much as I'd imagine a gun lover enjoys all guns from pea shooters to spray and prays.

That's it, that's the reason. As Jim Jefferies once said, the reason gun owners want to keep their guns is because they love guns. Period. A self-defense argument is bullshit. They don't have a copy of Fortified Doors Weekly on their coffee table. Odds are it's a mag showing someone in camo hunting down a fearsome deer who might otherwise overthrow the Earth if not for being kept to tolerable numbers. I enjoy occasionally driving fast; they enjoy occasionally shooting shit. I enjoy showing off my ride around town; they love polishing their barrel with their buddies (heh, okay that was troll bait). I don't 'NEED' a fast car any more than they 'NEED' a machine gun.

So, you might say, what if tomorrow someone threatened to take away my fast car? What if they said I should only drive a Kia? Well, obviously I would jump off a bri--er, I mean, I'd probably be opposed. I've got a better idea. How about making it a bit harder to get a fast car? How about stricter licensing--possibly involving six months of training? I'm all for it. Then again, guns are way, WAY cheaper than cars and much easier to acquire.

Long story short, I picked the wrong hobby.

Here's why I'm biased against pedestrians. I've done a lot of walking in my day. City, town, side roads, main streets...and I've always kept myself on the sidewalk, or on the grass. I only venture onto the shoulder of the road when there's absolutely nowhere else to walk. Even when this means greatly inconveniencing myself and stepping through prickers, mud, or snow, I do whatever I can to stay away from traffic. Rarely do I see anyone else that does that, though. People walk out into traffic, cross whenever they want, or expect magical bumpers to pop up and protect them. As a car driver, it's stressful (especially in areas where I live) having to watch not only the traffic ahead of me, and not only the crosswalks, but for any joe shmoe who decides to step off the curb. Believe me, when I'm behind the wheel I am keeping my eyes open. I'm not texting. I'm being as vigilant as I possibly can be...because if your dumb ass hobbles out into traffic I have to live with hitting you.

I feel sorry for Richard Stallman. I'm also fairly confident he'd assure me that wasn't necessary. Having listened to his speeches and read/watched his interviews, I can honestly say I admire the crazy bastard for his firm, unwavering dorm room politics. He believes what he believes and he'll carry those beliefs for the rest of his days. It's rare you see that in a person. I remember being (almost) just like him--at least in the way he takes his beliefs to an insane extreme (not owning a cell phone, not using social media, and of basically limiting himself to command line technology that was dated in the late 90's). I've never surrendered those things per se, but there was a time when I refused to watch the evil, corporate-owned movies that Hollywood spat out. A time when I wouldn't even sip a Coca Cola lest that putrid commercialism somehow infect me. After a few years of living my life that way, though, I realized I wasn't living my life at all. As a human being who eats, sleeps, shits, and is going to inevitably die someday, I realized I had to chill the fuck out. So what if I wanted to watch a dumb movie and sip a Coke? Which gets me back to RMS. There's a lot of really cool technology out there these days, even if it is made by those greedy bastards. Just the other day I was visiting my dear sweet mum. She heard me ask my Nexus 6 something via "OK Google," and her mind was blown. I had thought nothing of it at first, but ya know what? It really is pretty cool what we can do these days. Smartphones, streaming services, wi fi everywhere, cloud storage. All these things have dangers and we must be careful, but to banish them outright is such a shame. Mr. Stallman is keeping himself in a virtual cave, waiting for a day when like-minded individuals organize themselves to create HIS perfect vision of how software should be. I admire his determination, and if he's willing to make these sacrifices under the belief that he's protecting freedoms or actually making a difference, good for him. It's a good cause, but it's going to be a very, very long wait. And, whether he thinks I should or not, I still feel sorry for him.

I think this is a fantastic idea. I see dozens--no, hundreds!--of drunk cyclists every single day. How else do you explain their cutting into traffic and rolling through stop signs? And their clothing...ugggh their clothing. Drunkards!!!

I work in a school but am not part of the teacher's union. Teachers, and their unions, are like doctors, lawyers, hackers, and all other walks of life--some are good, some are bad, but most are somewhere in between. In the end, though, they want to get paid like anyone else. Teachers get summers off, all student breaks, snow days, and some personal time. When I read the article and see they'll be getting an extra 4k a year I can't help but cringe. Is this really about what's best for the kids, or is it the teacher's union getting a bit more money for the teachers? Again, I'm not part of that union, so maybe I'm just a spiteful jerk who has to be at work while teachers are enjoying summer break and whining about not making enough.

I work as a network technician for a K-8 school. My job, and the job of my small team, is to provide infrastructure and other equipment to our staff and students. Thankfully, we have an eager bunch who are anxious to learn. This proves beneficial to us because, frankly, we'd never get anything done if every student (or teacher) who didn't know how to cut/paste came running to us for support. That's not to say we don't assist people, or that we don't have busy days, only that smaller, more well-known problems can be handled by our staff--or, in this case, our community. Granted, we're also not some big company selling our product to consumers and then wiping our hands of any and all responsibility. Like with my humble tech team, a reasonable amount of service should be expected, but I strongly believe end users should be able to educate themselves. That said, I'm still gonna mash "0" until I get a human :)

It's a double edged sword, and no, I would not recommend meeting with someone after three weeks of chatting. Make sure you have a darn good idea who they are, even if it means phone calls and chatting for years. Then again, I don't have to educate anyone here about things like that. Ultimately, I'm arguing the added anonymity can help direct attention to the things that really matter. Things like personality, a sense of humor, and other attributes that lurk just beneath the surface. If all of that is a sham to begin with, the point is moot. If, however, two people come to know one another on such a level, it's a lot easier for them to carry that relationship into real life.