BruceVC

Yeah I agree. I have actually changed my mind about the best way to achieve stability in the ME. I use to believe that the best way to achieve this was through the traditional allies of the West, the Sunni states like Saudi Arabia and UAE but they have proven ....disappointing. Iran needs to be incorporated back into the global community I know they support Assad and fund certain terrorist groups that have killed Western troops over the last 15 years but we need to see the big picture. Iran is not just a country of religious hardliners...there are moderates and those are the people we need to reach out to. Which the West has been doing obviously Suddenly compared to ISIS and its brutal ideology Assad doesn't seem that bad ...now the enemy is ISIS But we need to be aware that there are several factors that seek to destabilize the negotiations...like Israel and certain Republicans. So Obama must just stay the course Also I hope this is the last time people dispute the notion that sanctions don't work ...clearly they do. They just take time

Yeah, I saw that But I'm not too concerned about what Netanyahu thinks. He has always wanted a military solution but its not his country that has to do the fighting. I say lets give the negotiations a chance....what do you guys think ?

Do you have some valid links that suggest the Greeks are the hardest working in Europe ? I find that extremely hard to believe....I would have to see the context as well If the Greeks were that hard working they wouldn't be in the situation they in In statistics they have most clocked workhours, but that don't necessary mean that they are most productive with their hours. http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17155304 Also it should be noted that all the numbers in statistics in this subject comes from national statistics and surveys, and that there isn't some common methods or standards in how this are or should be done. Thanks for the link, I read it in detail. Its interesting but not absolute in its view as you pointed out There are many variables that come into the equation

Do you have some valid links that suggest the Greeks are the hardest working in Europe ? I find that extremely hard to believe....I would have to see the context as well If the Greeks were that hard working they wouldn't be in the situation they in

What about a traffic cop who brings you a fine ....do you tip him

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/07/14/opinions/glaser-logan-iran-nuclear-deal-positive/index.html Guys this is a big story, much more important than people may realize Anyway well done Kerry and all the other negotiators who spent months patiently getting to this point. I'll comment on this later but this outcome is much better than the suggested military option from some

Doesn't seem like much fun, but that is a good approach for PR. Wonder if they have that here, though with our cops I figure it would be so blatantly staged. Maybe women cops aren't insecure hard types like the male ones I know. Malc why do you think it would be staged? How do you think your cops behave off the public limelight?

They did to some degree. There were less people with anonymous nicknames (but they did exist, like the guy I mentioned up-thread). I think that people were less inclined to be asshats in public with a real name associated with it but even that wasn't a guarantee. But as time went on more people created anonymous IDs or alt IDs and some of the alt. newsgroups (alt. hierarchies had a lower threshold to create and would often be abandoned and then repopulated by squatters) became the home of people who'd assail those who stumbled across their private clubhouse. And towards the end of the time I was there, the Discordians loved trying to wreck the hierarchy in general by randomly cross-posting across hierarchies and staging "invasions" and such. And there were console wars in the games newsgroup like clockwork every couple of months. When you say ID do you mean people had there first names or there surnames included ?

Yeah that doesn't surprise me at all...but he must realize he contributed towards this mess so he needs to accept his share of responsibility

You see the problem is there is a sense of impunity on Reddit where people can say what they want and insult who they want without moderation...so it reminds me of the whole GG saga. A few people were able to give the entire GG movement a bad name as far as the media and many others were concerned ( you notice GG got mentioned in the video...your infamy outlives you ) So even though you say that sexist element shouldn't matter unfortunately they do matter because of the bad perception it creates for Reddit And that's fine....I'm done fighting battles over places like Reddit. I have no issue if millions of people love Reddit and enjoy its moderation policy, they are entitled to post on any website they want and I know there are many interesting debates on Reddit . I wont support it and as Ms Lacy said people need to realize it will be difficult for it to become this huge financial success through the various ways websites generate revenue on the Internet See I absolutely and vehemently disagree with that. Those people did not give GG a bad name. People of your persuasion did by disproportionately amplifying what a minority of people have said so you can use it as a crutch to ignore and shut out opinions you don't like. It is a perception that exists not because it is objectively true but because it is what you choose to see. As far as Reddit and moderation in general. It is pretty simple really. 1) Freedom of speech (like any other freedom) comes at a price. You can say whatever you like. The price you pay is that people will say what you do not like. 2) Any law or rule or moderation policy is an extremely tricky thing. It can be too blanket or too vague and open to interpretation or abuse. And arguably in one way or the other always will be. The risk of that will always be present. Many people believe that in a place like Reddit the responsibility to seethe through the content, to deal with the possibility of seeing what you don't like, to guard your own feelings, is your own. If you can't, if you need someone else to protect your emotions, then it's not for you and that's ok. That is the price paid for complete freedom, for seeing humanity as is and not just a fake avatar, for never dealing with the possibility of chilling effects increasing moderation may have on free speech. The truth is nobody trusts social justice types to moderate fairly. Gamer Gate was the perfect example when thousands of posts were deleted completely regardless of their individual content. There is a fear that people who see racism in barbecue (yes this is for real) and sexism in any display male sexuality will get to be in charge of places like Reddit. Sure, I don't disagree with everything you are saying. You make some valid points but the reality of the reasons for the perception of GG is much more complex and nuanced than just people like me somehow amplifying the GG vitriol and misogyny that was real from some GG sectors. The mainstream media has also been critical about GG and you know the media loves to jump on a good SJ story...especially when there is some truth to it. So surly this should add some credibility to the overall validity ? But the issue about Reddit is not so much about free speech for me but rather how people use that free speech...so if you think free speech in respects to Reddit means you can insult people in anyway without consequence that's fine we can agree to disagree. Also another issue about Reddit was she attacked not just because she was a bad CEO, and all evidence points at the fact she wasn't that great, but she was attacked because she was a women and Asian. That's the issue I have

Depends on where you were at, of course. There were a lot of civil discussion, but it had its dark side too. One of the News Groups I followed, for example, had a guy who if you disagreed with his position in an argument would start a thread with the title being something like "<person-he-disagreed-with's name>is a child molester". And most people had their real names on their IDs (weirdly, this was one of the reasons that message boards were seen as great - the ease of being anonymous). A female writer had a falling out with a female fan who became an eStalker. There was an upper-line of admins for USENET (the USENET "gods") but for the most part they didn't intervene in the affairs of the board from a content perspective, but mostly was involved in propagating news groups, making sure votes for new groups was legit and the like. But it had its positive side as well, I interacted with writers, artists and game makers. And there were the great eccentric posters to read and good friends to talk with. That makes sense, there will always be a certain level of questionable behavior amongst any group of people. That is basic human nature But at the moment you get people who are truly professional Internet trolls, cyberbullies and enjoy antagonizing people and basically live to create Internet strife. Thankfully they get banned from most websites so we don't get exposed to there toxicity. It doesn't seem like that specific group really existed on USENET or if they it did it was very rare?

Reminds me a lot of USENET. Which was one of the problems (and features) of USENET1 and why many people went to message boards. 1I'm aware that USENET had moderated groups; they were not the norm though in my experience. What was USENET like? I always considered it the vanguard of Internet forums but it was more about intellectual debates and there was less general bad posting behavior like trolling and bigotry? Or do I have the wrong idea?

You see the problem is there is a sense of impunity on Reddit where people can say what they want and insult who they want without moderation...so it reminds me of the whole GG saga. A few people were able to give the entire GG movement a bad name as far as the media and many others were concerned ( you notice GG got mentioned in the video...your infamy outlives you ) So even though you say that sexist element shouldn't matter unfortunately they do matter because of the bad perception it creates for Reddit And that's fine....I'm done fighting battles over places like Reddit. I have no issue if millions of people love Reddit and enjoy its moderation policy, they are entitled to post on any website they want and I know there are many interesting debates on Reddit . I wont support it and as Ms Lacy said people need to realize it will be difficult for it to become this huge financial success through the various ways websites generate revenue on the Internet

No that's a good point...she must have misspoke? Aye. That's exactly what we do here with the romance threads. Yeah but it makes sense..its not like you guys are being unreasonable You can't have every discussion being impacted by Romance debates. Even BSN has rules about this

Yes I do, absolutely. There is no doubt in my mind that there will be elements on Reddit that will resent the fact there is an Asian women in charge or trying to change things Yes there are sexists and misogynists on Reddit, of course this doesn't apply to most of you guys. But it would be silly to suggest that view doesn't exist on Reddit

Interesting so it appears that Reddit is another forum where in some places sexism and misogyny is rife Glad I don't frequent it...I like the way she described the sexist element on Reddit ..." basement, underground cesspool " But she raises another good point, no point trying to moderate or force changes on Reddit....rather keep them contained there and ensure contagion doesn't occur on other forums

I like the idea of the ride-along

No, not really...but um, thanks for the inquiry? I don't believe you Barti.....you would lovvvvvvvvvvvvvvve to be arested by her....think of all the much needed discipline she could inflict on you..

Yeah, I really wouldn't mind getting caught by her...in fact I would demand a strip search just in case I missed something illegal I remember 3 years ago I was leaving a dance festival in Belgium called Tomorrowland and there was a large line of Belgium Police waiting at the exit including several really attractive Policewomen who were there to ensure there was no violence or issues due to the large numbers of people . They were trying to take the job seriously but I'm sure you can imagine the vibe and state in everyone was in after 3 days of festivities so the cops knew this was a very easy job and a relaxed job Anyway I walked/stumbled up to two Policewomen and said " its fine...I don't mind..I consent to a strip search " ...they both laughed and we ended up chatting about where I was from and what I thought about Belgium

I mean the second season, not everyone gets it the same time as you Europeans so we will get it in a day or two

Great news, the second season of The Strain is about to be released ....yaaaay

http://www.actionnewsjax.com/ap/ap/top-news/greeks-heading-to-brussels-for-crucial-talks/nmxH8/ Maybe someone can explain this, the Greek parliament agreed on Saturday to harsh austerity measures????? What was the point of the referendum which was a NO to austerity ? I see the current and understandable issue now is there are certain EU countries, like Finland and Slovakia, who are asking "can we really trust the current Greek government " .....I can see this concern so the future of Greece in the EU and will it receive further bailouts from the EU is still very undecided?

It's a milita force of 'sharpshooters'. I know that from playing Napoleon Total War. Look at you, you little EU linguist

My brother, his wife and my two nieces ( age 6 and 9 and very cute) came up from coast and we had a family lunch with my mom and stepdad at a very rustic but popular Portuguese restaurant called the Madeira Bar. I had Chicken Livers for starters and the Peri-Peri Chicken for my main ( its Portuguese you have to eat Chicken ) My 6 year old niece was sitting opposite me so I spent the lunch throwing little pieces of paper at her and then denying I was throwing them at her...every time she was about to throw one back at me I would say something like " Katie you musn't throw things at the table..its bad manners " We ended up having a great time with lots of laughs Today I'm going with friends to the Fourways Farmers Market, the place focuses on artisan and specialty food stalls so you can eat things like Philly Steak Rolls and of course there are Cheese Stalls ..plus there is live music and loads to drink so it should be a great day http://www.ffmarket.co.za/

Well I guess only time will tell but so far our social experiment is working for us Next you should tackle homelessness, just hide them away and pretend they're in a happy place. It will also work for you since it seem that you care less about the actual issue than about mending your feelings. Thats like a really....really bad analogy Homelessness can really only be solved through social grants or ending the poverty cycle like creating jobs for the homeless Prohibiting racist comments is about what people are allowed to say that others and the law of land find offensive and hurtful The two examples aren't even remotely similar