It can even include those above you in the chain of command. Anyone below the highest person in the chain of command whose backing you have is also a potential criminal target.

They usually stop trying to push the same thing when it fails once though. That's what differentiates MS from many other companies.

And this is the sort of thing that leads to the generalization of the Slashdot membership being composed almost entirely of virgins, or at least those who are not capable of sustaining a relationship with a woman that doesn't involve large cash payments.

Most of the addicts I've known do all those things. None of them are incompatible with addiction. At all.

Most things labeled "indie" only pretend to be intellectual. Most of them are just as shallow and full of shit as any big commercial product, just in a different way.

"Legislation" and "common sense" are almost always mutually exclusive terms.

Doh, that should have been $200...

Nope, but filling your hands full from your bloody nose and then covering the entire front of their $20 sports jacket in blood works wonders.

The existence of US-sponsored fascist groups in Venezuela does not, in any way, invalidate the point being made.

Your comment is irrelevant unless it is your contention that, indeed, every single person who opposes Maduro is a violent fascist.

I suggest going to Venezuela and attempting to publicly broadcast a dissenting opinion. See how long you're left to your own devices. I suspect it wouldn't be a particularly long time.

I guess that rules out calling Hitler, a democratically elected politician, a dictator.

A democratic election does not prevent the elected individual from being a dictator.

The Arab Spring clearly demonstrated why unlimited democratic power in the hands of the people is a recipe for disaster.

Democratic power only works if it is strictly limited in scope. If it is not, people tend to elect sociopaths who will confirm their biases whilst engaging in their own personal corrupt predilections.

It's also worked brilliantly for China.

Indeed. The larger the development, the cheaper it is to buy off a small number of local politicians in comparison to fairly compensating a large number of property owners.

If the US was broken up into a large number of smaller republics, it would also be easier for the populace of any one of them to deal with this type of politician in a manner they deserve.

I use propane, which is a gas you insensitive clod!

My credit union is great about reversing overdrafts, which are 1/3 that charged by banks anyway, and they do credit cards as well. The only differences between banks and credit unions anymore is lower charges and more responsive customer service at credit unions, plus an equal vote in elections for the board of directors.