Well, they are kind of correct in that the Korean War ended with an armistice and not a peace treaty. Armistice: temporary suspension of hostilities by agreement between the opponents.

Was that referring to the US Army designation?

What do you mean? I am just curious and NOT trying to start a debate. I just don't know what you're referring to.

I hope you haven't copyrighted "Holy Shit..." cause I'm going use it. That's a great line and can be applied to many companies such as EMC and Cisco. In fact, later today I'm attending a kick-off meeting for our VOIP project with Cisco gear. Now, if I can just get up the guts to use that phrase with the CFO in attendance.

Love your sig.

Although I agree with you about the defense contractors, let's also not forget unions (and non-union) employment. Those defense contracts mean jobs for the people back home. And they're going to be mighty PO'ed if they lose their job due to the company not getting that last contract. So, remember, it's not all just money in some corporation's bottom line, there are a lot of jobs depending on those contracts. But I do agree with the previous posters idea of getting some bucks from defense. Being a big science (and science fiction) fan for over 40 years, I've always considered NASA to be jewel among government departments and one that has paid for itself many times over.

Not surprising considering his legacy. Of course, Harry Truman wasn't a very popular guy in the Dem party for a while after he left office.

So what did they do with their EMR software? Where I work, the EMR or hospital information system, runs on Windows. Period. Not Linux. Windows. And so we're locked in. The provider's and nurse's documentation is done in MS Word. I keep asking why are we paying $200-$300 a pop for Office when there are free versions out there? Answer - the system only works with MS Word. Swapping EMR's out is not a solution. We're talking upwards of $50M and for a small hospital. But, I probably won't have to worry about it in a year's time or so. Thanks to Medicare\Medicaid reimbursement rates going down (in some procedures, the payment is less than the cost to provide the service) and ACO and Meaningful Use, small hospitals are finding it difficult to survive. So, when the takeover (around here it's euphemistically referred to as a 'meger') happens I'm sure IT along with a lot of the non-clinical areas will show a reduction in staff.

Well, for personal consumption, we have Maple trees in NW Michigan and tap them for maple syrup, too. Some people do sell it, also.

That's good that you mention the cost to the user. Whether a hybrid or an electric car is the way to go, the cost has got to come down. I drive a '08 Cobalt that I bought new for $14,000(US). They keep hyping the Chevy Volt but there is no way I'm paying around $40K for a new vehicle. Perhaps in the distant future (no idea how far), all new and used cars will be electric-powered in some way so the cost is equivalent to gas-powered, but until then there is lot of people who couldn't afford a "green car" even if they wished.

Unfortunately, government is the only entity with deep enough pockets and no mandate to make a profit. I'm in no way bashing industry but with the amount of dollars (since we are talking US), its only the government that can fund it. I'm a 'small government' person but when it comes to basic research, and not just limited to space but oceanography, climatology, etc., I'll gladly pay more in taxes if I know that it will keeps things going.

Forget it. Name the most unpolitical or apolitical subject and in this election year, someone will blame either Romney or Obama or Rep or Dem.

Actually, capitalism on the whole, has been pretty darn good for the world.

And CMS (aka Medicare). They're just as bad as the insurance companies. They make the same kinds of decisions. Absolute refusal to pay for tests based on diagnostic code (even though the family doctor may know that person since their birth and knows the medical history).

Or the McMartin pre-school trials (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMartin_preschool_trial). And I know what you mean. I'm a single, white, 50+ male. Heck, I might as well be wearing a sign that says 'possible pedophile' around my neck even if I'm in the vicinity of kids (which makes it hard considering I live next to a grade school).