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Pancho Villa

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Everything posted by Pancho Villa

  1. Can I take it seriously for him and shoot him, and say to him as he's bleeding to death, "Don't worry, I'm sure all that blood you're losing is just an illusion!"?
  2. I have spent my whole life in public school. I was never, ever challenged, and I ended up failing classes as a result - why bother, when I already knew everything? The only time I worked semi-hard at all was when taking the exit exam at 16, and passing wonderfully. Been in college ever since - hardly better. But educating myself is the biggest concern of mine, now. I buy books, etc in my free time and tutor myself as best I can. To be frank, most instructors these days aren't worth it.
  3. My only experience with katrina refugees have been rather confused people I have had to deal with at work, trying to find a payphone to contact relatives, friends, or just a local contact for their work. There have been a few of these. I work in downtown Dallas (The Fountainplace, for now) and they seem to be rather polite, just confused. I have not seen any of the type described previously. But I should also note that I have not been to wal-mart since before Katrina hit (I hate - HATE - shopping, I do it at most once a month and gather enough supplies to last as long as possible.)
  4. It should be noted, several people of the anti-tax persuation have solid legal arguments that will stand up in court. The proof is in the pudding: the IRS refuses to take them to court, and they openly (and loudly) do not pay their income taxes. The existence of the IRS, if one does a bit of research, is really just de facto. If challanged in court, they will not be able to stand up to it. Thus, they don't take people to court who know that and are prepared to fight them.
  5. What kind of question is that to ask? What concern is it to a rational individual what "the world" would be better off with or without? Unions, as a whole, are a neutral subject. They may either be organized to help the individual or as a racketeering gig in order to make profit for leaders who do not work at all, except to extort money from its members and from businesses that hire them. Unless the trade unions have gotten legislation passed that makes it mandatory to hire people of a certain qualification (journeyman, master, etc) from the trade unions, then they can be evaluated as either moral or immoral, depending on how exactly they function. If they have, however,then they are obviously immoral. I don't know any specific trade unions except for the dock workers' union in San Francisco - utterly corrupt, incompetant, and there only to punish anyone who does their job well. Obviously, immoral.
  6. "Waste" implies, lets see: I highly doubt that companies racing to claim land in space for their own profit would be money expended thoughtlessly or carelessly. Therefore, it is not a 'waste,' merely an investment that may or may not pay off (as any investment.) The logistics alone would mean fighting in space just plain old isn't worth it. But the fact is, the laws that govern space should be the same laws that govern any rational society - property rights, etc. The government is not an economic overseer. Its there to protect individual rights. You are proposing it take on a function it is neither equipped nor has a right to. No case at all for restricting private ownership in space, though the concept of 'land' will have to updated to include "slots" in orbit, as they will be valuable.
  7. That is an important thing to consider. One, meritocracy implies a "clear playing field" in all things - something no human agency can guarantee. It is ascribing the power of omnipotence to government, saying that (somehow) the government can "level the playing field" and make everyone start from the same "fair" position. Who judges what is 'fair' and how a government accounts for all the random obstacles one would encounter in one's life is, of course, up to whichever beurocrat ends up in charge. In the end, its just a fascist dictatorship, not a capitalist economy. 'Meritocracy' is not the goal of any rational system of politics.
  8. Simply, it is not merely public organizations that can be your enemy. Private ones (such as the Red Cross) have explicit goals that run counter to any rational person. This is the reason, I think, that people here tend to disapprove of the Red Cross.
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