Dove

134 ms·

931.
by Dove 16y ago
G.K. Chesterton, in Orthodoxy , talked about the problem with crazy people. Talk to someone who believes crazy things -- say, a conspiracy theorist or a cultist -- and you will find that they are not, as you might suppose, without reason.
932.
by Dove 16y ago
There is a certain crowd of atheists that believe religion-- any religion--is not merely incorrect but is actually transparently irrational. Notionally, that if a religious person would just take an afternoon and think carefully over what
933.
by Dove 16y ago
My sole experience with jury duty -- during voir dire: Prosecutor: Juror number six, slightly abstract analytical question . Me: Intelligent answer . Prosecutor: The prosecution thanks and excuses juror number six. Uh huh. I'm gonna reme
934.
by Dove 16y ago
I find it amusing and disturbing that you have a great many upvotes for this comment, but that it is ambiguous whether this support is in favor of reforming the law or killing the trolls. Or possibly both.
935.
by Dove 16y ago
Correct (and good memory -- that was quite a while ago). Also a reason to use my handle as a primary name and put my real one behind a clickthrough. That was also more of a concern when I was younger (and in gaming contexts -- hence a slig
936.
by Dove 16y ago
As widely as possible. My real name is accessible from my profile. My handle is my most widely used internet handle in non-gaming contexts; using it is a means to recognition, not anonymity. My reasons: (A) When I was 14, I embraced anony
937.
by Dove 16y ago
I first heard the expression in an article about resolving writer's block [1]. While that particular article is specific to role-playing games, the idea has more general application and I've heard other writers refer to it. The basic idea
938.
by Dove 16y ago
Out for a pleasant walk, I stroll. On an afternoon's hike, I stride and sweat. Between classes on opposite ends of campus, I run. To catch a departing bus, I sprint. Not everything has to be sustainable. Know the differences, know your
939.
by Dove 16y ago
I clicked through and wound up disappointed. There's merit to the suggestions, no doubt, but I was hoping for something more like this: 1. Consuming stupid entertainment 2. Staying up too late 3. Eating crappy food 4. Not eve
940.
by Dove 16y ago
The auto insurance industry seems to have figured out how to encourage drivers to behave safely. They say, in effect, "Based on what we know of your lifestyle, habits, and past rate of accidents, it will cost you $300/mo for us to assure y
941.
by Dove 16y ago
Misaligned incentives. You shouldn't pay your programmers to fix bugs or lay down lines of code, but to produce working software. You shouldn't pay your doctor to treat you, but to make and keep you well. You shouldn't pay your mechanic t
942.
by Dove 16y ago
Not to worry. HN readers have high standards and wield their downvotes aggressively . I've never seen such a well-maintained community as this one.
943.
by Dove 16y ago
Actually, I think countably infinite sets of sets are okay, too. It's when you're allowed to choose an arbitrary element from an uncountably infinite number of sets that weird things start happening. (Not that I can call pedantery given
944.
by Dove 16y ago
There's a bit more to the subtext than that. The Axiom of Choice sounds quite innocuous: If you have a bunch of sets, you can construct a new set by picking one element out of each of them. Turns out you can reason your way from that to "I
945.
by Dove 16y ago
Scans screen . 200. No, wait, that can't be right. Spots several two digit numbers which alone would add to two hundred. Looks more like . . . using previous sum as a "what 200 looks like" baseline . . . I'd say 500.
946.
by Dove 16y ago
At Value Village (a thrift store), items are priced with colored tags. They are left on the racks for a few weeks, go through a week at 50% off, and then spend one day at 99 cents before being removed and discarded. That last markdown to
947.
by Dove 16y ago
Psychopaths. http://www.damninteresting.com/the-unburdened-mind
948.
by Dove 16y ago
I disagree strongly with the sentiment that bullies just need love, that they're only doing it because they are hurting too. People are diverse, so I won't deny that perhaps that's sometimes true. But I think it would be more accurate to
949.
by Dove 16y ago
Being able (or expected) to enjoy your work is a relatively new thing in human society. I can't make a claim about the broader state of the history of ideas, but I do know the idea is found in the Bible. I have seen personally what i
950.
by Dove 16y ago
Thank you for that. I'll admit I didn't really have ancient China or Greece in mind when I referred to the past -- I was thinking more along the lines of the past couple hundred years in the West. You know, that same group of folks that we
951.
by Dove 16y ago
Really! That goes strongly against what I think I know about mores and history. Do you happen to have details or documentation for that claim?
952.
by Dove 16y ago
I have always thought abortion an act of barbarism against which both the past and the future would revolt. Babies are killed for convenience and profit; it'd be over the top for comic book villains, and yet it is real. It won't survive
953.
by Dove 16y ago
It didn't catch on HSA enrollment has been rising by about 2 million people per year for the last few years, and is now at about 10 million people [1]. I'd say it's catching on. I cannot recommend the HSA/High Deductible combination high
954.
by Dove 16y ago
A desire for privacy need not have a devious root. When I am working on a nascent idea, I am often fanatical about privacy. I absolutely do not want my most trusted friends or colleagues to so much as look at what I am doing. Not because
955.
by Dove 16y ago
Color me unsurprised. I dislike Java as much as the next person, but for a certain class of problems -- particularly in game programming -- it is a tool I often reach for. Java is a painfully verbose language that does not trust me with an
956.
by Dove 16y ago
The pigs can't hurt it. But there are animals called 'creepers' that could mess it up quite badly. Only if you're close, though.
957.
by Dove 16y ago
I dunno. In that comment, he describes being the first in his family to graduate from high school or college, and his mom sending him away to live with an aunt so she could work. In the original post, he described not being able to scrape
958.
by Dove 16y ago
Survivors of any traumatic experience can reflect on their experiences in a wide variety of ways. John Scalzi is not reflecting on his own experiences. He is just as privileged as you or I; he is merely claiming to be so much more awar
959.
by Dove 16y ago
Ah! Then I agree, practice is essential. Sometimes you'll think something -- a particular brace style, a naming convention, a commenting convention, a design choice -- will make code better. But when you try it, it doesn't help comprehens
960.
by Dove 16y ago
I don't deny the reality of poverty, but this discussion leaves a bad taste in my mouth. The world is full of pain and nastiness, but this particular list accentuates and celebrates it. Can you imagine a similar piece writing about the woe

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