Not all parts are easily or quickly replaceable and most things aren't designed correctly.

Please, knocking out the power grid or making all the red lights turn green or whatever they're afraid of is nothing like having a bullet penetrate someone or a bomb going off - it's almost impossible, if not impossible to kill someone by hacking into a computer.

You're flat out incorrect here. First, not only can the power be shut off, but generators can be made to explode. Second, if you mess with the supply chain electronically, it's possible to do some really interesting stuff with medical supplies, parts for just in time manufacturing, etc. Could go on - but the overall effect is direct, substantial life threatening consequences.

Im not a fan of the IRS, but let's be real: 1. There are almost no government agencies or civilian organizations that don't have fairly terrible security...2. These checkbox requirements dont really tell a story. 2. These checkbox requirements dont tell a story of the actual level of security. You'd have to take a look at the whole architecture to figure out whether, for example, those UNIX passwords actually were important or not.

There should be a moratorium on government internet legislation of any kind until the first crop of kids who grew up with it and understand it are in power. The current group doesnt and will do long lasting damage - even if their intentions were/are good.

No. 1. That wasnt run by the government and it was a joke - even to the government. 2. Do you think the government changes decades old policy in the space of a week or two with such large implications? Not without a lot more motivation.

However, the simulation WAS accurate insofar as it portrayed how the gov't deals with the internet...so it's going to be a fun time the more they get involved ;)

You hit it exactly. They're interested because of its ability to affect political power. Everything other reason is just an excuse.

I dont know about sodul, but my wife pays taxes but cant vote because she's a resident alien with Finnish citizenship

The Constitution is perfectly fine. At any point in time, we could elect other people than the farktards we elect now (over and over again). It's a brilliant document that assures we all get the government we deserve.

0day implies that there is a --non public-- vulnerability and/or exploit out in the wild that has not yet been disclosed outside of relatively small private circles (nothing to do with the time between vuln and exploit). Its meaning has been lately bastardized to include "things for which we dont have a patch yet" - and it's that bastardization which creates scenarios that don't make "sense".

-all of them- deliberately misleads to sell. Fox only differs in that they're public explicit about their market niche / demographic. (This comes from someone who's watched staged media events :P ). Shrug.

I dont get why people single out Fox here. The whole media mess is a cross between a game of "telephone" where stories are single sourced and passed along from outlet to outlet losing fidelity over time, deliberate pandering for access, staged details for "clarity", deliberate playing down or up of details to meet advertising demands, shoddy fact checking, and - more than anything else - wild misrepresentation of stories through just reports not understanding what they're reporting on (they're entertainers after all).

These are all things I've personally encountered with multiple news outlets. Calling Fox out on it in particular is sort of ridiculous, IMO.

Really, it's both: IE should be avoided until there's a patch and yes, blaming one software package does give people who dont know any better or dont think about it a false sense of security when they switch. They're not mutually exclusive positions...

I just want to say this is my favorite Slashdot post in some time....

We know what happened to the Golgafrinchans

It's Disaster Area's stage in a parking orbit.