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Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

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Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#161

Post by jcromartie »

ninjac0der wrote: post #149

I guess I shouldn't be surprised at how many people look down on these actions, but I am. No american is "innocent" when they legislate thievery so they can continue eating nachos while wanting to expense thier medical costs to the rest of us, have us pay for their poor judgment with money. Ignorance of the consequences isn't an excuse. Most Americans are vanilla enough that they never find themselves outside the ame…

> Most Americans are vanilla enough that they never find themselves outside the american comfort zone

Most Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck (about 60% last I heard).

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#162

Post by ninjac0der »

jcromartie wrote: post #161
ninjac0der wrote: post #149

I guess I shouldn't be surprised at how many people look down on these actions, but I am. No american is "innocent" when they legislate thievery so they can continue eating nachos while wanting to expense thier medical costs to the rest of us, have us pay for their poor judgment with money. Ignorance of the consequences isn't an excuse. Most Americans are vanilla enough that they never find themselves outside the ame…

> Most Americans are vanilla enough that they never find themselves outside the american comfort zone Most Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck (about 60% last I heard).

Wonder how many of those still have cable TV. Give me a break.

http://www.heritage.org/research/welfare/bg1713.cfm

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#163

Post by johnrob »

pw0ncakes wrote: post #135
johnrob wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Easier said than done. In the long run, I don't see humanity surviving if it doesn't figure out how to keep smart, disgruntled people in check.

There have been smart, disgruntled people forever. On the whole, I think they're less violent and therefore less dangerous than dumb, disgruntled people.

There was probably nothing like 9/11 1000 years ago. Technology is a lever, improving it increases the power of small groups.

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#164

Post by NathanKP »

javert wrote: post #105
bsaunder wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And if had my servers hosted there, I might consider moving them.

Why? This isn't the hosting company's fault.

Don't you think the FBI is going to be looking through his website? I wouldn't be surprised if they poked around in other servers while they were at it.

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#165

Post by [deleted] »

johnrob wrote: post #163
pw0ncakes wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There have been smart, disgruntled people forever. On the whole, I think they're less violent and therefore less dangerous than dumb, disgruntled people.

There was probably nothing like 9/11 1000 years ago. Technology is a lever, improving it increases the power of small groups.

[deleted]

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#167

Post by meric »

markpercival wrote: post #7

The site was pulled down, here's the copy of the rant: If you’re reading this, you’re no doubt asking yourself, “Why did this have to happen?” The simple truth is that it is complicated and has been coming for a long time. The writing process, started many months ago, was intended to be therapy in the face of the looming realization that there isn’t enough therapy in the world that can fix what is really broken. Need…

I disagree with his methods, but I kind of sympathize with the guy. He is disgruntled that 1. The rules are different for different entities. (big companies get bailed out but individuals don't) 2. The law isn't consistently applied. (i.e It is arbitrary) and 3. When he got audited he felt like being mummified by red tape. He feels that a confusing bureaucracy is similar to a corrupt one. But, as someone said his text is a like a 'shell' people can fit into. In that case it might be just me, then.

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#168

Post by jcromartie »

ninjac0der wrote: post #162
jcromartie wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most Americans are vanilla enough that they never find themselves outside the american comfort zone Most Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck (about 60% last I heard).

Wonder how many of those still have cable TV. Give me a break. http://www.heritage.org/research/welfare/bg1713.cfm

Of course a conservative policy center will tell me that poor people are wasteful and/or lazy. However, the same Americans that are mostly living paycheck-to-paycheck are also the same Americans that work more hours than a lot of countries with much better situations. It's also not just about what you have... it's about where you can go and how far you are from outright financial ruin. In the US you are probably not mobile and probably just a serious illness or injury away from bankruptcy.

It's not like the amount of the cable bill would go very far to pay for things that other civilized nations take for granted, like medical care and education.

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#169

Post by cookiecaper »

saturnine wrote: post #130

I surmise his software ventures never succeeded because he hated the IRS more than he loved programming. In 1987 alone, he says, he spent at least 1000 hours railing against the tax code -- about 20 hours a week. His obsession with, and resentment of, the IRS started when he and others tried to create their own religious organization, ostensibly to draw attention to the capricious laws exempting religious organizatio…

So what do people respond well to? I'm not seeing any changes even though the guy's sentiments are shared by many.

Re: Anti-IRS Rant of Software Engineer who Today Flew Plane into IRS Building

#170

Post by pw0ncakes »

johnrob wrote: post #163
pw0ncakes wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There have been smart, disgruntled people forever. On the whole, I think they're less violent and therefore less dangerous than dumb, disgruntled people.

There was probably nothing like 9/11 1000 years ago. Technology is a lever, improving it increases the power of small groups.

In terms of death toll, I'd probably disagree. It seems that 20 men from the upper classes (on horseback, armed and trained to use weapons) could destroy an 11th-century town of 1000-3000 inhabitants (although suffering heavy losses on their end) if they were so inclined. A powerful nobleman could assemble the knights.

In terms of impact, you're probably right. I think it's likely that 9/11 is the first news story to have reached half the world's population in a few hours. However, there are pre-modern events that rival it in terms of potential impact. I can't think of any from the 11th century, but the Defenestration of Prague comes to mind, as would the Gunpowder Plot had it succeeded.

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