And what about the 500 million-plus people who misuse Facebook for everything? Maybe it's free beer, but don't we all have "friends" on Facebook who are driving around on it drunk? As others have, and will, say, I know a lot of elderly people who couldn't be on the Internet if it wasn't for AOL's point-and-shoot simplicity. At least AOL largely confines their n00bishness to within AOL. Facebook is far worse, because we're all subjected to it.

I would go with a combination of analog and whitelist, revealed in the course description / prospectus. Translation dictionaries need to be bound printed matter and are subject to your inspection. Extend the amount of time available to take the exam by 50% to accommodate the analog dictionaries. Calculators must be a model from a whitelist of known non-networked devices. Just take a look at the TI catalog and pick the ones they can use. Students can submit their devices for approval during the first week of class; after that, only approved devices are allowed.

Again: There are more trees in Maine now than ever before.

I will point out, once more: Maine has more trees than at any time in recorded history. That is the product of paper. Maine has some of the cleanest air and water in the United States, in spite of being at the end of the Jet Stream, in geographic terms. If the price of having lots of trees is a little gasoline and a little exhaust, I think we're getting a fair trade. If you disagree, quit your job, move out of your house, and into a cave.

I suggest you actually walk a new woodlot in Maine or Quebec before you go telling me how it looks.

I see. And none of this would apply to hemp. Rather than wasting time calling me names, try applying some brain power.

Monoculture can be a problem. It was in Maine, until restrictions were placed on the use of herbicide, and our large landowners switched over to sustainable forestry certifications such as SFI. I can't speak specifically to Domtar's lands but having been in the Quebec woods many times, I can tell you they are not running out of trees of any sort. As far as paper bleaching goes, I suggest you update your information; most US and Canadian paper mills -- at least, the ones here in Maine and in the Maritimes / Quebec -- have switched to non-chlorine bleaching systems, again due to federal regulations / laws.

I live in Maine, a state where growing trees to support paper making has, for nearly 100 years, been a major part of the economy. The sustainable harvest of hemlock and spruce has actually increased the amount of forested land in this state to a higher percentage than at the time of European settlement. Of Maine's 19 million acres, about 17 million are forested. (Previous to colonization, Native Americans practiced slash-and-burn agriculture throughout much of the state. From the time of statehood forward, agriculture was a bigger economic contributor here than timber -- because trees grow slowly in northern climes -- until the financial panics of the 1890s, which wiped out most of the farming. This conveniently coincided with the growth of newspapers, which was largely helped by the invention of technology to create paper from wood pulp, versus linen / cotton. That made harvesting softwoods a profitable business.) We in Maine have had our problems with the environmental impacts of wood harvesting and paper making. Our rivers were, until the 1970s, foul and stinking highways for pulpwood and paper plant waste, until our senators George Mitchell and Edwin Muskie helped pass the Clean Water Act to clean up all such rivers. Even more recently, practices (such as clear-cutting) that negatively impact flora, fauna, soil and water have been changed, both by fiat and by industry cooperation. We still have offenders and problems, but most of Maine's large landowners (about two-thirds of the state's lands are owned by fewer than 10 corporations) care deeply about good forest stewardship. The greatest contribution of profitable tree growth for wood pulp is our tradition of permissive trespass. Unlike other states, here in Maine you can generally freely drive down private roads and use private lands for hiking, fishing, skiing, snowmobiling, camping, ATV riding, hunting and other outdoor activities. It is rare one finds a toll road / gate fee these days, and many large landowners go out of their way to help visitors find and get to places of interest. All this is made possible by paper. It's done more to keep Maine wild and protect its natural resources than any environmental group ever will. Paper, private land ownership and vigilant cooperation to protect our traditions is not "environmental negative." It's the only way to protect our resources, because people only protect that which they value. Less than 5 percent of Maine's land is in public ownership (e.g., state and national parks) but it is world-renown for its bounty of natural riches as "Vacationland." Paper did that, not some hippie who thinks hemp is a green strategy.