Ever heard of a supercomputer? You know, those computers that cost millions of dollars and are the fastest computers in the world? Well, the fastest ten all run Linux. Guess who can afford a computer like that?

Guess what OS routers are running. Yep, Linux. Guess what Pixar and the other CGI houses use? Linux. Do you think the automakers are using Windows to run simulations??

The only Windows computers are the little ones sitting on office drones' desks. The big iron mostly runs Linux these days, where it used to be UNIX.

On top of that, who the hell pays with cash anymore?

Me, for one. I only use my credit card when I'm short of cash and the bank's closed (Sundays) or it's the most convenient way to pay, like when buying online. There are a lot of places that are cash-only; JD's on laurel accepts no checks or cards, only cash although most restaurants will take cards. Most bars don't take cards but most will take a paper check.

Why would I use a card when I have cash in my pocket? All it does is add a fee the seller has to pay, which raises prices.

Quoth the raven, "Nevermore!"

Guys, these are medical devices. They won't be able to sell them in the US without FDA approval and in other countries with their governments' medical regulatory agencies' approval. And with these, unlike gMail or search, you are the customer, not the product.

For those of you who missed the significance of the first sentence, google it (although you shouldn't have to, you should already know).

I think you need more coffee.

Monopolies are bad. Government makes a monopoly. Results are bad.

Utilities are natural monopolies, governments don't create those. Do you have a choice of who you can buy your natural gas, water, or electricity from? Look, if the city runs the utility and the utility is badly run, the mayor will lose his or her job, as has happened here in Springfield more than once. Know what happens when the next administration gets into office? Rates go down and service improves. Springfield owns CWLP and we have the lowest electric rates and best service in the state, simply because Amerin customer's can't vote Amerin's CEO out of office, but we CWLP customers can.

I'll take my democracy over your "free" market any day.

I'm having a Sheldon moment; I thought you were serious. Mr. Poe is bitch-slapping me again, I guess, since there are so many here that actually believe that bullshit (or troll effectively). So I'm going to pretend you're serious even though I know you're not.

We'll be the first to tell you that "past performance is no guarantee of future success."

True, but past lack of performance is a solid indication of future failure.

The GP said "Utilities should be public, and not operated for profit." I half agree with that, based on my own experience of living in Springfield (yes, we have an Alderman named Gail Simpson). CWLP is owned and operated by the city. We have the lowest rates, the best uptime, and the best customer service in the state. And yes, CWLP turns a profit which helps keep taxes down (they sell power to other power companies as well as residents and businesses).

In 2006 two almost EF3 tornadoes tore through springfield, completely destroying much of the south end and east side's infrastructure. There wasn't a single utility pole left standing in my neighborhood. You could still see the scars the tornado left years later. A couple of months after our tornadoes, one hit the St Louis area. I visited my friend who lived on the east side of the river, who had been without power for a month. His lack of electricity was the only indication that there had ever been a tornado.

If you're on Amerin or other private company and your rates are high and customer service sucks and the power goes out every time it rains, tough shit, buddy. It's not like you can go down the street to the competitor. You have no power over its CEO whatever; he's beholden to the stockholders, not you. OTOH if my service degrades or my prices go up, the Mayor will lose the next election -- it's happened several times before.

Besides food and oxygen, every object we use to determine wealth is kind of bs

How about clean, fresh water? How about fuel for heat? It would be impossible to stay alive here right now without it. How about the building materials to make something to hold that heat?

Yes, those are all required for survival. But I wouldn't call mere survival "living".

You have that backwards. A kilo is 2.2 pounds. Double, not half. You're confusing it with miles and km; a mile is .6 km.

"I'm a doctor, not an inventor."

What episode or movie did he say that in? The AC's quote is from "The Devil In The Dark".

I've always considered "Maker" to mean something roughly equivalent to "hobbyist".

GM is an auto maker. Does that make them hobbyists? I write for a hobby, and do it a lot better than many professionals. I know musicians with day jobs who are better than most major label musicians. "Professional" doesn't guarantee quality or talent, it denotes that the person is earning money for their craft (and there's no guarantee that he's the least bit dedicated or even competent), while the hobbyist does it for the love of the craft itself.

Indeed. Other religions don't, but Christians who actually read their bibles know that they're supposed to love everyone, no matter how big an asshole they are.

The AC you responded to spoke of the klan as if that had anything whatever to do with religion. I know a card-carrying klan member, a man who spent ten years in prison for murdering a black man. He's an atheist who doesn't believe in the possibility of God.

Right. Because Linux / Firefox / Flash / Acrobat dont all need security updates.

The difference between Linux and Windows in this respect is that with Linux, when a vulnerability or other bug is discovered, a patch is issued as soon as possible, and a notice pops up that updates are available, so you click once and you're done and can keep on doing whatever you were doing.

With Microsoft, once you allow it to update your machine is unusable for half an hour as it downloads the updates, popping "helpful" screens along the way and preventing you from doing anything useful, then you have to close all your apps and docs, reboot, wait some more while it's shutting down to install updates, wait some more while it's rebooting to install updates even though you had to wait while shutting down, then log in again, then put up with more "helpful" screens, then you have to reopen all your apps and docs.

The difference is, Windows is a pain in the ass about it and Linux isn't.

You fellows need to do one of two things: either learn how computers work and learn what sentience is, and/or see a mental health professional because you guys are showing signs of a disease someone I knew a few decades ago Had, schizophrenia (there are different forms of that disease). Chuck had me convinced that he was a fighter pilot in VietNam until I found out he was a lot younger than he looked, and was only 13 when the war ended. His form of schizophrenia was thinking what he saw on TV and the movies was his real life.

Conversions are easy unless you need exactness. A kilo is a few ounces more than two pounds. A litre is a little more than a quart (quarter gallon). A meter is a few inches longer than a yard. A kilometer is .6 mile. Simple.

As to using metric units for a WWII era American device that was designed and built using imperial units, why? Just take the weight of the thing and divide by two and it's a little heavier than that. Precision isn't necessary and why should someone else convert their measurements to yours? Look, it's a hundred miles from Springfield, IL to St Louis, MO. It's 217.8 km from London to Dublin.

When in Rome, dude.