Exactly, and it is developing the ability to discern truth, or, in other words, reality, that is most neglected in much of our children's nurturing. Coming from such as religious or political interests, many in our society have been inculcated with the perception that belief trumps reality, (except, of course, for those living in it). From suicide bombers to government-shutdown advocates in Congress, the costs stemming from this cannot be overstated.

Young, developing minds have difficulty separating reality from fantasy. In many ways society encourages this, whether with Santa Claus or "happily ever after". This disconnect is used to comfort and motivate the developing child. The cost comes later in life, when many still have trouble discerning between attractive falsehoods, ("global warming has no anthropogenic causes"), and hard, cold fact.

Many here have proposed teaching logic before coding, and that is reasonable, but as a first step, perception must be groomed to discern between that which we want to believe and that which actually is. Without that, logic has no basis in fact and is as useless as a no-op code.

In the '70s Boeing shut down the SST project. Seattle reeled in the aftermath, prompting the billboard, "Will the last person to leave Seattle, please, turn off the lights."

Of course, politicians love to make hay by decrying the loss of jobs. Social progress and clear thinking are sidelined by such facile, emotional arguments. Had today's political climate existed 100 years ago, we would still be paying for whale oil price supports.

... might be difficult to explain to shareholders. Unless MS outright intends to kill Nokia, they had better clue-up on the salability issue.

... is subject to criminal punishment, what are the remifications for the legal industry? Is this man's only crime that he did what he did without a law license?

Raphael Mudge demonstrates the time-honored Lucrezia Borgia school of business management.

... Ray Walston didn't live to see the headline for this piece.

... whether it's Al Gore or Bill O'Reilly, the world prefers to get it's information from clowns. The clown's antics serve the message, if not so much the facts. The throng-de-jure suscribes to the message of its choice and the facts will just have to get in line; afterall, real science is too hard.

... the little dears should be required to develop an imagination. This is a giant leap forward in producing human automatons.

To ensure that the IAB and its members properly respect individuals' privacy, I suggest that any members, employees, or affiliates of the IAB be required to publicly post their own data that is of the same kind they collect. This means their own political preferences, purchasing statistics, and location data, etc. should be available to the public, in real time. And, while I'm sure the IAB would be eager to comply with this simple request in a show of good faith, this requirement should carry the weight of law.