Viewing profile — skookumchuck

And everyone expected IBM to take over! And they almost did...

> You happen to be speaking to someone who has studied astrology in earnest and believes it has some merit. I wouldn't say that too loudly to people you want to impress with your c…

The missing part of your story is why a competent person became quite poor and homeless.

I don't buy DRM-encumbered ebooks. Sorry, Amazon. I buy the hardcopy if there are no DRM-free ebooks.

The unanticipated downside of a policy of nobody can be fired.

I saw a TV show many years ago where the therapist simply set up a video camera in the dining room of a family to record, every day, the family dinner. After 2 or 3 weeks, the fami…

126 members of the House support it: https://www.thenation.com/article/voting-age-16-climate-stri...

It's curious how 16 year olds are regarded as incompetent to handle a loot box, but should be given voting rights.

I'd actually prefer the mike in my phone, computer, etc., to not be that sensitive. I don't want it to be picking up background conversations, for example.

> references cannot be null void test() { int* p = 0; int& r = *p; } compiles without complaint.

From page 8, only 1 in 5 is retired. Even so, claiming that retirement savings do not count as wealth seems rather odd. You can choose to read the book and determine how it is done…

> one can't choose to have the motivation Of course you can. Sheesh. Take responsibility for yourself.

> Nobody gets rich via income. 85% of American millionaires are self-made (i.e. first generation). "The Millionaire Next Door" https://www.amazon.com/Millionaire-Next-Door-Surprisi…

You're denying people have free will. People are all born with different characteristics, sure. But this does not predestine them. You, with your brain, can choose your path. You c…

You can get up and go jogging and improve our health. Or you can turn on the TV. It's your choice. Just like you chose to write "What evidence is there of that?". You weren't fated…

I didn't posit they did. But I'd expect a correlation. > Income, yes, but not wealth. Why is that? Wealth is just an accumulation of income.

So you think it "very unlikely" that someone more intelligent would make better decisions, and those decisions have better outcomes enabling someone to live in a pricier neighborho…

Drive and motivation is a choice, not luck.

People aren't randomly assigned zip codes. Zip code can also be a proxy for IQ.

> I think it's because intelligence doesn't help when it comes to earning money. What evidence is there of that? > The luck and social component is so strong that there is very lit…

Europe has an interest in promoting their state-sponsored airplane manufacturer, Airbus.

So do Boeing engineers, mechanics, and everyone who works there.

> there is literally ZERO incentive for them not to repeat all this You're assuming they have no stock or stock options in Boeing.

If it's productive enough, it's worthwhile paying the tax. There's only so much undeveloped land, developing it all means destroying our environment.

Ideally, taxes should be used to discourage undesirable things, like emitting pollution. Taxes should not be used to discourage productive activity. We should be taxing pollution, …