The Republicans took control of the House just as districts are about to be redrawn. Bad timing for the Dems, to say the least. This will cost them even more seats.
I was just discussing with Rym that the winners of the most unbalanced election, right before census results are in, get to decide the districts after the census results are in. Not even counting the Gerrymandering, that's already sort of fucked up. That shit would not fly in a board game.
Because of the ultra hard push of technology and medicine, I will never "Get Old".
Even as a futurist, I must inform you that your body will wither and die before we can grant you biologic immortality. We might be able to figure out how to copy your consciousness onto a computer before this happens, but considering that cell death is what actually prevents cancer in many circumstances, there are massive hurdles to jump.
Note that extremely long life might be possible; we're apt to see some interesting developments in that field by the time I enter middle age. However, true immortality is fantasy right now.
"Debt," pay down the debt. We need to close the budget "deficit." Whenever I hear people talking about "reducing the deficit" I laugh. That's like like saying we need to "slow the bleeding," We don't need to slow it, we need to STOP it.
Thank you for this observation. The reason I try not to pay too much attention to politics anymore is that I don't see my views represented by the major parties. I know I'm on the fringe, but when you see the left say "Let's spend 1.6 trillion dollars more than we collected this year" and the right say "You are the devil! How could you suggest that! I demand only 1.3 trillion dollars more than we collected!", and your personal view is "we should only spend what we have", you can see how it's a little bit of a stretch to get behind either party.
What bothers me is that our biggest actual expenses are care for the elderly and defense. The people most against government spending are by and large dependent on the former and strong advocates of the latter.
Solution: Get rid of the old people.
Seriously, if we get rid of the old people (ship em off to new zealand or something), we'll only have young people. Young people making money and contributing to society, spurring innovation and creativity.
We Need To Get Rid of the Old People.
Yeah, send them over here, gee, thanks. Maybe they can audition to be "old" Hobbits so that we can get a bit of a return on them before they drain our minuscule health care budget
Because of the ultra hard push of technology and medicine, I will never "Get Old".
Even as a futurist, I must inform you that your body will wither and die before we can grant you biologic immortality. We might be able to figure out how to copy your consciousness onto a computer before this happens, but considering that cell death is what actuallypreventscancer in many circumstances, there are massive hurdles to jump.
Note that extremely long life might be possible; we're apt to see some interesting developments in that field by the time I enter middle age. However, true immortality is fantasy right now.
What about human brain plus android body? Japan is coming along with their fembots, how long before we can control one via our brain?
The brain degenerates with time. The only workable solution is a digitized brain and a cloned or prosthetic body. The big problem, though, is that it's impossible to know if your identity will persist when you brain is uploaded. You could die in the process, but the "new you" would still behave exactly like you, just...not.
Thanksgiving is not going to be pretty for me this year.
...?
Half of my family, including my father, are austere conservatives who are dangerously close to Tea Party levels of irrationality. Half of them vary from chill moderates, to relatively radical pro-Prop 19 progressives (my mom and I). The conservative half likes to start shit at family gatherings and back it with ignorant, fallacious arguments. Things are likely to get ugly.
The brain degenerates with time. The only workable solution is a digitized brain and a cloned or prosthetic body. The big problem, though, is that it's impossible to know if your identity will persist when you brain is uploaded. You could die in the process, but the "new you" would still behave exactly like you, just...not.
That's a wholly philosophical question. There's no way I would notice if any corruption occurred mid transfer unless I fail some sort of checksum, like if I started liking cooked asparagus or something. And besides, knowing myself, I wouldn't care. "I" would be alive.
Well, at the very least, an AI construct with false memories that you lived and your intelligence and personally would form. If I was at the end of my lifespan anyway, I'd do it. However, the only surefire way to create an immortal digital copy whose consciousness is contiguous with yours is to actively rebuild the brain into an AI actively while parts of it remain organic, in effect procedurally building a neural network using brain tissue as a blueprint and modular nanites as replacement nerve tissue, with the brain locking into a single solid core once the process is complete. Then, you digitize the entirety of consciousness, and you can then back it up and manipulate it at will.
Don't get me wrong, I am in full support of digital immortality of my persona. But I would rather have digital immortality of my self.
Well, at the very least, an AI construct with false memories that you lived and your intelligence and personally would form. If I was at the end of my lifespan anyway, I'd do it. However, the only surefire way to create an immortal digital copy whose consciousness is contiguous with yours is to actively rebuild the brain into an AI actively while parts of it remain organic, in effect procedurally building a neural network using brain tissue as a blueprint and modular nanites as replacement nerve tissue, with the brain locking into a single solid core once the process is complete. Then, you digitize the entirety of consciousness, and you can then back it up and manipulate it at will.
Every time I think really hard about this subject it scares the shit out of me.
Why do I always think of you as being in Pennsylvania? You're very Pennsylvania-nish in my mind.
Also, does it seem that Pennsylvania always gets colored yellow on US maps? New York is always blue, California is always red, and Texas is always green. Weird.
I voted for the I hope you all die in a fire party.
The flames are too damn high.
In other news, Pat Quinn narrowly defeated Bill Brady. This means four more years of spineless mediocrity and possible corruption, but we avoided putting a puppy-killing, bible-thumping, intelligent design-mandating, misogynist religious loon into the office, so I'll take it.
It's sad that the city of Chicago is the only pocket of sanity left in this fucking state.
Not only did my Secretary of State announce a winner to the gov race based on "unofficial" vote counts but now a "bag" of votes was "found" in Bridgeport! To make matters worse the "unofficial" vote counts did not include absentee ballots!
There is some speculation that her lackluster recent performance as SoS is due to her being denied a chance to run for Attorney General because she did not meet the requirements.
Not only did my Secretary of State announce a winner to the gov race based on "unofficial" vote counts but now a "bag" of votes was "found" in Bridgeport! To make matters worse the "unofficial" vote counts did not include absentee ballots!
Why are there still BAGS of votes? We have machines with paper tallies that print out at the end of the night.. Notice PA gets it's results back extremely quick.
Why are there still BAGS of votes? We have machines with paper tallies that print out at the end of the night.. Notice PA gets it's results back extremely quick.
Because they ran out of ballots in Bridgeport, and they had to start doing it the old fashioned way.
I still don't understand why we aren't using the trusty old mechanical lever-machines everywhere.
I still don't understand why we aren't using the trusty old mechanical lever-machines everywhere.
That's what PA uses, they're pretty awesome. Still waiting for internet voting though.
Up here it varies from town to town, and even between polling locations. Beacon had the machines, and so did my hometown of Trumbull, CT. NYC has scantron.
I still don't understand why we aren't using the trusty old mechanical lever-machines everywhere.
Politicians were told by lobbyists "If you pass a law to mandate 'modern' voting machines and contract us to build them we will support your campaign next year!"?
I have to admit that I feel a sense of nostalgia with the old lever machines but there is also something in me that says "Why are we still using technology that was developed 60+ years ago?"
I really disagree with the way they, the government and private industry, has handled security for the new fangled computerized voting machines. Security through obscurity is no way to handle something like an election.
It does make sure that those people who want to stay in can find it easier to stay in power. Just call up the manufacturer and find the weakest point!
That makes me wonder what would happen if there was a concentrated effort to hack all the state's electronic systems and push a 3rd party candidate into the white house with a 100% vote. Something blatantly tampered with and yet make it so no one can readily detect it.
Knowing how the government is they'd prolly just pass another law to make it even more illegal to do rather than fix the underlying problem, /lesigh
Comments
Note that extremely long life might be possible; we're apt to see some interesting developments in that field by the time I enter middle age. However, true immortality is fantasy right now.
In other news, this video is hilarious:
Good luck getting anything in the next two years!
Buncha impatient sods.
Well, it's not like any of the candidates were any less shit.
Don't get me wrong, I am in full support of digital immortality of my persona. But I would rather have digital immortality of my self.
Also, does it seem that Pennsylvania always gets colored yellow on US maps? New York is always blue, California is always red, and Texas is always green. Weird.
In other news, Pat Quinn narrowly defeated Bill Brady. This means four more years of spineless mediocrity and possible corruption, but we avoided putting a puppy-killing, bible-thumping, intelligent design-mandating, misogynist religious loon into the office, so I'll take it.
It's sad that the city of Chicago is the only pocket of sanity left in this fucking state.
Not only did my Secretary of State announce a winner to the gov race based on "unofficial" vote counts but now a "bag" of votes was "found" in Bridgeport! To make matters worse the "unofficial" vote counts did not include absentee ballots!
There is some speculation that her lackluster recent performance as SoS is due to her being denied a chance to run for Attorney General because she did not meet the requirements.
CT voting shenanigans
I still don't understand why we aren't using the trusty old mechanical lever-machines everywhere.
I have to admit that I feel a sense of nostalgia with the old lever machines but there is also something in me that says "Why are we still using technology that was developed 60+ years ago?"
I really disagree with the way they, the government and private industry, has handled security for the new fangled computerized voting machines. Security through obscurity is no way to handle something like an election.
It does make sure that those people who want to stay in can find it easier to stay in power. Just call up the manufacturer and find the weakest point!
That makes me wonder what would happen if there was a concentrated effort to hack all the state's electronic systems and push a 3rd party candidate into the white house with a 100% vote. Something blatantly tampered with and yet make it so no one can readily detect it.
Knowing how the government is they'd prolly just pass another law to make it even more illegal to do rather than fix the underlying problem, /lesigh