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Comment Transparency (Score 5, Insightful) 109

One reason for quarterly reporting is that it gives greater transparency and insight into how a business actually works. Many businesses are seasonal. Most obviously, virtually all retail has its best quarter at the end of the calendar year. But many other types of businesses have key cycles each year that are tied to, for example, the buying habits of their largest customers. Suppliers matter, too; if farms have a bad quarter due to weather or other factors, for example, you're going to want to watch how that impacts food producers somewhere down the line.

Comment Re:Retesting old dogma... (Score 1) 126

I remember hearing, years ago, that the EU no longer recommends beta blockers as a first-line treatment for hypertension (high blood pressure) for a similar reason: They don't seem to do anything. Sure, they lower your blood pressure numbers, but (as I recall) the meta-study showed no appreciable difference in outcomes. That is, people who received beta blockers experienced the same number of heart attacks, strokes, and other hypertension-related problems as the group that didn't take them.

Comment Re:What if we don't? (Score 1) 79

What if Trump and heritage foundation goons propping him up let them collapse so they can use stable coins to create a new banking system for themselves and only themselves?

Real question: What would be the point of that? Even hoarded gold would have no value if nobody but a select group of people could do anything with it.

Comment Re:So this is illegal (Score 1) 153

This country's government is designed to have checks and balances on power. Congress isn't supposed to rubber-stamp every suggestion the President makes about spending -- they're the ones in charge of those decisions. Judges, particularly at the highest levels, aren't supposed to be partisan stooges; they're supposed to follow the law, but that doesn't seem to be what we have now. Nobody outside of the executive seems to want to exert their power, for fear of losing it. Apparently, it's enough to be able to claim having it.

Comment Re:Government should not own businesses..?? (Score 0) 105

The government shouldn't be spending tax payer money on this, but as badly managed as Intel has been for years now I'm not certain that the government could screw them up any worse.

A government that's dedicated solely to extracting as much money from the U.S. economy and awarding it as gifts to loyalist oligarchs couldn't screw up a corporation worse than it already is? Ye of little faith.

Comment Re:How does it work? (Score 1) 50

I had a friend whose job at Oracle was to gin up fake demos of products that didn't exist. When the customer saw the demo and decided they wanted it, the second-tier sales staff would drag out pricing negotiations until the product was actually built. If the customer ever got anything for their trouble, it was an alpha at best.

Comment Re:Sold his stock (Score 1) 98

Thanks for the museums. Seriously. Kids in SJ have all grown up with field trips to those and it’s amazing to think you gave up billions to fund museums for everyone rather than buy an NBA team. We met a few times in the 90s at the eyeglasses store in Oakridge Mall and you were always more smiles than frowns.

Comment Re: Sold his stock (Score 1) 98

The stress of the interview gives you a better insight into how they will react when presented with an unexpected situation. I’d never want a bullshitter on the team. A quick, “I don’t know offhand. I could look into it. Why do you ask?” is better to figure out their motivation, if there’s a project related to that, or how it’s important to them. In my career it has always benefitted me more to not give bullshit answers and get more understanding of what the client needs. The interviewer can tell immediately if that person is trained to think that way rather than an individual contributor who sees only a task to be completed.

Comment Re:Oh no! (Score 1) 59

I dream a lot lately, too. Mine are also in color. But mine, while they contain dreamlike elements, in that some stuff usually happens that doesn't quite make sense, they're generally about pretty ordinary situations, even if things like people and locations are made-up.

As for why I have frequent dreams, I just associate it with getting good, restful sleep.

Comment Sounds highly implausible ... yet possible (Score 4, Interesting) 59

I couldn't read the full article (paywalled), but the first paragraph mentions night hags, "night mares," succubi, and incubi. These are now all believed to be historical ways of describing the phenomenon of sleep paralysis. Many people who experience this phenomenon describe the experience as terrifying. They see things like a large, shadowy figure at the end of their bed, or crawling toward them, or sitting or pressing down on their chest.

One of the causes of episodes of sleep paralysis can be chronic obstructive sleep apnea. Even if you don't experience sleep paralysis, sleep apnea can also be associated with nightmares.

You know what else is associated with sleep apnea? Stuff like heart disease, COPD, Type 2 diabetes, and even stroke. So, you know ... don't scoff. It's research.

Comment Re:I turned off notifications long ago (Score 3, Interesting) 61

I have mine mostly turned off/opted-out, too. Particularly on my phone, the only notifications that are audible are text messages, which for me are typically from actual people, or important alerts, such as when my bank completes a significant transfer of funds (such as to my landlord). Everything else is muted.

Here's the thing, though: A lot of people don't want to spend the time to prune their notifications. With so many apps and websites defaulting to sending you notifications, it becomes yet another version of mowing the lawn. (And this is probably by design.)

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