Well done sir! Your post made me feel better than my daily session of Healing Touch therapy.

Not necessarily just time and talent, I think this would result in the currency used in the amazing game Alpha Centauri: energy. Energy would become the de facto currency, as it would be useful to basically create and run everything, and it's not exactly something you can throw into such a replicator and create a copy of.

Just because someone can benefit from braille doesn't mean they're completely sightless. They may need the braille keys to confirm what buttons they are pressing but can see well enough otherwise to navigate without a cane or seeing-eye dog. Its kind of like having to wear glasses to read but not needing glasses for everything else. Kind of.

Not necessarily true. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_brake : In cars with rear disc brakes, the emergency brake either actuates the disc calipers (again, with much less force) or a small drum brake housed within the hub assembly.

Exactly, the empirical proof that such a thing is not possible (the fact that the guy is still alive) is explained away with excuses. This is the same thing going on with homeopathy, faith healing, healing touch, and other such alternative medicines. Still, it makes for great TV!

I actually work for a car insurance company handling claims, and I have seen plenty of situations like this. If someone is uninsured and causes an accident, it is almost impossible to collect against them personally for damages. If they don't have car insurance in the first place, it is unlikely they have any assets to go after for restitution. The upshot is that if you're poor, don't worry about car insurance and just hit whatever and whoever you want while driving, because there are few consequences. Did you know that in some states (like NJ), municipal entities are legally protected against restitution from car accidents? Just like the uninsured individual, if a local goverment-owned vehicle smashes into your parked car, they're not responsible for your damages and you're out of luck. Its things like this which really burn me about the industry and laws.

Second that. There are very few songs in the NIN library that I skip over when listening to albums from beginning to end. Every song may not be pure gold, but the stinkers are few and far between. To claim that there are no modern-day artists that create entire albums worth listening to is utter hooey.