so asking a question is now a 'down-votable' offense on HN? WTF people? either don't answer or point them in the direction of some research. Don't down-vote, you arrogant fucks.
the problem then would be that only the 'important' people would have guns. I don't see any politicians giving up their security details. I don't see Diane Feinstein or Chuck Schumer giving up their 'concealed carry' licenses. Its a classic "Do as I say, not as I do."
If they can carry in their overly restrictive states, why can't the electorate? don't they have the same rights? No? because political elitism.
...speaking of 'unhelpful' to the conversation, please explain what 'We' can do about it? Nothing. The fact is that CONgress actually legalized domestic propaganda (which is what this is).
'raising awareness' does nothing as the snowden incident showed us. 1984 is the SOP now.
But it's not domestic. The article specifically states that this is not be used on US based sites. Posts are not in English.
Not saying some other program doesn't potentially exist but this particular program is aimed at sites in the Middle East and Asia. From the article: languages in which the interventions are conducted include Arabic, Farsi, Urdu and Pashto.
The problem, as I see it, is (the Alphabet Agency) has a proven ability and now authorization to do X to Y but promises to never to do it to Z. This is the point where trust comes into the equation. As has been shown via FISA courts, warrantless eavesdropping & sneak/peak ex post facto warrant abuses, trust no longer exists. Sorta like how the US vehemently denied torture until disclosures & evidence mounted so high they couldn't keep up appearances & now hem & haw about how somebody will be held accountable... some day.
tldr: If they have the ability, you can depend on them finding a credible(sic) excuse for using it just that one, initial time. Thus starts the tide of more rationalizations and the ultimate abuses to follow.
While I am no fan the POTUS' international policies, I am even less a fan of war or being the world police. These 51 'diplomats' are mid-level and all 'career' diplomats.
Civil war sucks, but sometimes, you have to let the people fight. Few, if any country in the world exists today because it's people wouldn't fight for it (take a hint, Iraq).
Ok, but meanwhile there are a lot of innocent lives being ruined as homes are destroyed and civilians slaughtered at the hands of a brutal dictator and his Russian accomplices. Unnecessarily destabilizing regions because we don't like a regime is one thing, but using our military prowess to help threatened peoples defend their lives and political freedom is quite another.
see my comment on being the "World Police". This country supports and props up dictators all the time. Why should we pay for a war (with dollars and blood) in another country when we can't even help the homeless here?
You as a human being will make sure your children/family are fed first, before you give to someone else, right? How is that any different as a nation?
The researchers wanted to test whether city birds had 'higher boldness, reduced neophobia, and enhanced problem-solving and learning skills'. These specific test was done to see whether they could guarantee reproducibility of the results. Something like a control
that still makes no sense as far as 'intelligence' goes. First off, rural and urban birds have different overall diets. if you stick a french fry in front of a rural bird, it might not know its supposed to be 'food'. Same can be said with water-bugs and urban birds. there are too many factors to consider - though they could have and just not reported the specific metrics.
It's sad because congress is where our individual vote carries the most weight. It's a crucial institution for our country, without which we'd be nothing more than an empire (in my opinion). Now more than ever it is important to root out the cronyism, nepotism, and big-money that has corrupted this important branch of our government.
You can't clean up Congress because you only get to vote for one of 438 members. In general the problem with members of Congress is that their constituents actually like them and frequently re-elect them.
This fact is quite sad when you consider that there are some representatives who state that it's their job to make sure nothing happens. Then people elect these people!
Maybe people have higher confidence in their own Congresspersons. Perhaps, they disagree strongly with their counterpart voting constituents on the Coasts. If this is the case, democracy is working as expected.
I also believe democracy is "working as expected".
It's hard to see locally, but we're a country that's deeply divided on some core issues. Half the country wants gay marriage, the other half doesn't. A single-payer-advocating socialist almost won the Democratic primary, where his opponent is talking seriously about trying to "roll back" the ACA ("Obamacare"), this president's legacy domestic policy achievement.
I feel like half the country wants to become more like Europe -- more socialist, higher minimum wage, high taxes, big social safety net, free universities, lots of job protections (and the reluctance to hire that goes with it), minimal/no religion, less marriage, whereas the other half wants to step back about 50 years to picket fences, nuclear families, and a more isolated national existence.
We aren't going to have another civil war but I wouldn't be surprised if, looking back, we're more ideologically divided now than the country was, then.
That divide is fabricated by political strategists (see "wedge issues"). When you talk to people about topics where the parties haven't staked out a position yet most people are willing to compromise or simply don't care.
As many American soldiers died in the Civil War as in every other war we've ever fought combined. If we were as divided now as we were then, I think it'd be surprising as hell.
The Civil War didn't occur just because of how deep the divisions were, but because they were strongly correlated with geography and not strongly correlated with class (particularly, that the divisions were quite present among the upper class with disproportionate influence on governments, and, while not perfectly aligned with geography, strongly correlated with it especially among the upper classes.)
The same degree of division with different geographic and class distribution could very well not have similar results.
My senators are douchebags. They (almost purposefully) split on nearly every important vote, thereby saving the 'state' from being on the 'losing' side... never mind having a united front on anything...
I'd call it an almost complete breakdown of the parliamentary process in this country. The unwillingness of Congress to advise and consent with regard to filling a supreme court vacancy is unprecedented and the media is essentially ignoring it given the constitutional crisis it truly represents.
Then you must address the fact that SCOTUS is now adjudicating law based not on the law itself or precedents or logical reasoning, but how the individual judges personally feel the law should apply... which is why congress is hemming-and-hawing over it.
also, much like Soylent Green, companies are now 'people'...
You are confusing the last 50 years with the last 5000 years.