smackay

42 ms·

391.
by smackay 13y ago
The Russian government is endorsing a meeting between an American dissident and human rights groups - pinch me, I must be dreaming. It seems that the old Cold War days of political intrigue between East and West are back with a vengeance. W
392.
by smackay 13y ago
It would be more accurate to state that Germany's manufacturers of solar panels are imploding due to the large volume of lower cost panels produced in China which are flooding (allegedly being dumped in) the market. There is a two-way
393.
by smackay 13y ago
Makes you wonder whether they can tell who the real enemy is. Dr. No or Dr. Evil ?
394.
by smackay 13y ago
Required reading for anyone who has children and indeed for anyone making purchases of any kind, anywhere. The Behavioural economics page on Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Behavioural_economics is a little dry
395.
by smackay 13y ago
Don't cherry pick. Student loans, though a new idea in the UK, are rapidly inflating in price. Not to the astronomical levels of the USA but heading in that general direction. Care for the elderly is a growing rapidly also. I don'
396.
by smackay 13y ago
You know, I'd really like to see what would happen when "push came to shove". It would either tear-off the fig-leaf of terrorism or the rest of the world would really understand that the US government has developed into a par
397.
by smackay 13y ago
Quite the opposite in fact, http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/the_poor_give_m...
398.
by smackay 13y ago
There is the case of the Haitian Revolution, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_Revolution , where that is exactly what happened.
399.
by smackay 13y ago
I think you are seeing the "true" influence of government to government relations, rather than the general sentiment on the street or the empty rhetoric from officials. France made a big noise about the spying allegations but quic
400.
by smackay 13y ago
From priceless quotes like "My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.", https://en.wikipedia.org/wi
401.
Britain 'under attack' in cyberspace(bbc.co.uk)
1 points by smackay 13y ago|0 comments
402.
by smackay 13y ago
Portugal has offered to take detainees (2), http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/08/07/portugal.syri... and I believe other countries have also offered. I am not sure whether this already has ta
403.
by smackay 13y ago
For any small window of time evolution is the hum-drum existence of daily live - being born, being eaten, etc. Only over significant periods are the patterns of change discernable. There are good examples of evolution at work over periods t
404.
by smackay 13y ago
What good is all this balancing technology when you cannot step outside your own front door. You may as well put bars on the windows to save the government from the trouble of putting you in prison.
405.
by smackay 13y ago
First North Korea and Iran make a mockery of the USA in negotiations over their nuclear capabilities. Now it's Hong Kong and Russia. Next in line is Ecuador. The reservoir of USA authority is evaporating fast with no real way to stop i
406.
by smackay 13y ago
I wouldn't under-estimate the value of this as an experience for kids. I discovered a copy of "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" by Alan Sillitoe in a pile of old books my parent had. It was like discovering a small nugget o
407.
by smackay 13y ago
Yes, but what happens when your community find out that you no longer believe in God or that you think the Earth actually revolves around the Sun. It's not when things go right but when things go wrong that matter. The points of failur
408.
by smackay 13y ago
This issue has nothing to do with the efficacy of the tests. In a perfect world having a list where 25% of the names are potential trouble-makers (for various definitions of trouble-maker) would be an enormous benefit and allow resources to
409.
by smackay 13y ago
I don't think it's a sense of entitlement at all but rather decades of trust (and reliance) that was built after World War II when the only thing standing in the way of Soviet domination was the USA. It was always a little naive t
410.
by smackay 13y ago
For a bit more context you can learn more from the Today programme on BBC Radio 4, http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0213yfh/live . They have an interview with Conservative MP Bob Neill and Sir Anthony Hooper, a former appeal court judge. T
411.
by smackay 13y ago
I completely agree. It is the short timescale that makes toughing it out worth considering. If the project had several months to go and not just six weeks then speaking up or getting out would be the correct courses of action. From the prob
412.
by smackay 13y ago
An additional confounding factor is that a lot of the people who are currently in power in these countries grew up and started their careers under the former dictatorships. Indeed the previous systems of entitlement, bullying and patronage
413.
by smackay 13y ago
I'd be hesitant to raise concerns, on what appears to be a relatively small project, in case you become the scapegoat and a way for either the manager or your colleagues to point the finger at you for not being a team member and hence the r
414.
by smackay 13y ago
You have to think of it in terms of the nightmare that is unfolding in Mexico rather than recreational use of drugs by people who are otherwise able to support themselves with jobs.
415.
by smackay 13y ago
Unfortunately Steve Jobs broke the lock on the Pandora's Box that contained Walled Gardens so in light of that, this seems an obvious step for Google and could likely work simply because of scale and ease of adoption - something that the ex
416.
by smackay 13y ago
The can-do attitude is something to be envied but the dynamism and opportunities available in the Valley and generally in the USA make a big difference. If your big idea doesn't pan out then the (almost) worst case scenario is that you simp
417.
by smackay 13y ago
My only criticism of the Django docs is that every sentence has equal weight. That makes it difficult for someone starting out to distinguish between things that are absolutely critical and those that just nice to know. However once you are
418.
by smackay 14y ago
The mix of interests of governments, companies and individuals are never going to be perfectly aligned. Indeed greater transparency on the motives of companies can only be a good thing - then nobody is disillusioned when they act in ways wh
419.
by smackay 14y ago
Big chunks of dealing with the government (taxes, etc.) in Portugal are in the form of Java applets. I think this is repeated across Europe. Most of the apps are little more than forms - there's a lot of logic in the way the different field
420.
by smackay 14y ago
Sadly, it does not seem to be working: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungerford_massacre http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunblane_school_massacre You don't even need a gun, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Shipman

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