Just how many Islamists have we killed in Iraq and Afghanistan? Why exactly are we there again?

I bet the body count for Iraqi Islamists killed by US Christians is far higher than the body count of all Christians killed by Islamists over the last 10 years.

True. Everclear, however, is illegal in many jurisdictions. it's hard to get anything more than about 100 proof. Then there are the handling issues and the waste - ethanol is flammable, and you have to pack out the bottle/plastic jug.

It would really be interesting to see this for real.

You don't backpack much, do you? Carrying a liter of alcohol in a backpack is a huge weight, no matter what condition you're in. The less weight you have, the more fun it is.

And yes, most of use use some sort of poowdered sports drink, often to hide the taste of the water we get from streams and lakes, even after filtering.

As a backpacker I really support this. There's nothing like sitting arond dinner at night, nad having a drink under the stars.

But the maker has added bulking agents. You'd have to snort a lot - and I mean a lot - to make anything happen. No doubt some idiot would try this, but really, this is a great idea who's time had come.

I would love to take some with me on backpacking trips.

Because, depending on the laws, signing up for the military in State X can be construed as treason in State Y, even if you have citizenship in both.

And if you become a POW, you may not be subject to the Geneva conventions, if your captors claim that you are a citizen of State Y and they're at war with State X.

It gets really, really complicated.

Actually the taxes are a big problem. I work in Canada, and as a US citizen, few banks want to do business with me because of the reporting requirements imposed on foreign banks by the IRS.

Also, if both countries have the draft, you could become a felon in one while serving in the military of the other. Lastly, if your kids do serve, then as dual citizens they could be construed as "enemy combatants" not subject to the Geneva convention.

renouncing your citizenship is very expensive as all taxes come due immediately - that means any capital gains are due in cash NOW. The total bill from the IRS can be tens of thousands of dollars.

Honestly, and I say this as a naturalized US citizen who went through hell and high water to get a US passport, if your kids have no plans to use their US citizenship, then don't do it.

I don't disagree with you.

I suspect that the movie with its name of "Uprising" will focus mostly on space and moon-gravity battles, fantastic CGI, and drop the whole birth of a society theme. Instead of a drama it will be action, with Manny the one-armed wonder and Mike the ever-present computer.

? Must be different from when I was an officer. Never heard that. Interesting.

He was very frustrated and distraught at having to leave the Navy. The Navy was his first career choice and he did not want to leave. He felt that he could have contributed much more had he been allowed to stay in the Navy.

I was not being contemptuous; I was being truthful.

two votes for Friday. No selective editing, though. :)

that just about describes every single Heinlein novel. He was a frustrated Naval officer wannabe who grew up in a very racist, sexist, nationalistic time.

The amazing thing that I find about his writing that in spite of all that, he was one of the very first writers who wrote openly about interracial relationships, who put women into strong positions (although never of leadership, except in Starship Troopers), and basically was years ahead of his time.

I sincerely hope they don't fuck up The Moon is a Harsh Mistress anywhere nearly as bad as every other Heinlein adaptation.

But changing the title from "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" to "Uprising" does not bode well; the book is not about an "Uprising" but about how a society develops when the rules of normal society are removed. The actual "uprising" in the book is almost a by-product and not a central theme.

Wheeler changed his stance quite recently.

I expect someone from Google, etc. had a little back room meeting and "explained the world" with the equivalent of a short metal pipe.

You, sir, win the internet today.

Joe sixpack doesn't know about this, nor does he care.

He's going to go to Newegg, or Best Buy, and click on the cheapest laptop he can find.

Lenovo could preload it with *fish out the wazoo, and as long as it's the cheapest thing in the store it will sell.

Considering it's the conservative moral majority nutjobs that want to "clean up" the interwebs, I'm not really sure what your point is. I thought the conservative view was that regulation was bad and that these rules were bad? Now you're saying they're bad because they let the conservatives apply their own narrow morals to them?

Who's side are you on?