Just been reading the BBC news site and came across this story.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/2894987.stm

I cannot believe that whilst there's still a war going on, some US fat cat is complaining that european manufacturers might get some business out of the rebuilding of iraq.

I read something similar about contracts to provide electricity, gas, phone services, water treatment were all given to US companies. It just reaffirms my opinion that it's all just 'jobs for the boys'. Even the UK (who've had far too many soldiers killed by US friendly fire) are left out of these contract negotiations.

Greedy money grabbing bastards....

Hmm... The new plan is to use the war as a excuse to try to get more money it seems... How nice of them.

- Trevor

some US fat cat is complaining

I overheard American tourists referring to the Euro as the Eurodollar, more than once over the weekend in Paris - so maybe that's Bush's next objective.

Mind you, Iraq spent £136,200,000 with the French in the first half of last year, making it their largest business partner, so maybe Bush needs to head that off and get in with some of the boy's contracts.

LMAO. People making money off of something? Perish the thought. Someone has to rebuild Iraq, why shouldn't it be the companies that work and get taxed under the countries that helped to liberate Iraq? They are paying the taxes for the military forces over there.

France has done nothing positive and in my option should get no benefits. They have insulted several EU and future EU members in trying to claim their stake in world policy - and yet that haven't done anything but talk, insult, belittle and badger - exactly what their past shows they do and will continue to do. If they get shut out, that's fine by half of the world.

In the end it should probably go for the company with the best "bang for the buck" - but I wonder where the money will come from to rebuild Iraq and it's government? UN? US? Iraq? UK? France? Russia?

France has done nothing positive and in my option should get no benefits. They have insulted several EU and future EU members in trying to claim their stake in world policy - and yet that haven't done anything but talk, insult, belittle and badger - exactly what their past shows they do and will continue to do.

HA! Reminds me of that Monty Python scene:
FRENCH GUARD: You don't frighten us, English pig-dogs! Go and boil your bottom, sons of a silly person. I blow my nose at you, so-called Arthur King, you and all your silly English k-nnnnniggets. Thpppppt! Thppt! Thppt!


FRENCH GUARD:
I don't wanna talk to you no more, you empty headed animal food trough wiper! I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!

Well, they did give the oil well cleanup to Halliburton, the company Cheney was the head of. Suprise suprise.

Now go away or I shall taunt you a second time'

Check out this worthless drivel reprinted in the Austin American Spaceman from the Washington Post. I can't believe people actually care about/pay attention to this...

I don't see a problem with not allowing companies from countries that did not support the war to participate in the re-building process. Re-building is a means for boosting the re-building country's economy while simultaneously solidifying the dependency of the re-built country on the re-builder's resources. Countries that participate in the re-building process stand to gain enormously and those countries that currently are not supporting the war are well aware of this fact. This is why they're raising such a stink with the UN. In my opinion, however - if those countries want to reap the benefits of the re-build then they need to fork up. They can't expect to get something for nothing.

I certainly do hope, however, that when it comes time to rebuild that the US does include other coalition countries accordingly. That would only be fair.

- trs

(I also hope the grammar police don't cite me for this terribly awkward post )

Re-building is a means for boosting the re-building country's economy while simultaneously solidifying the dependency of the re-built country on the re-builder's resources.

But that's the whole point. Saddam, although an evil main, is the current legitimate ruler of Iraq. We may not like it, or the fact that he is a tyrannical dictator. The Iraqis may not like it, or the fact that he is a brutal dictator. But the fact remains that he has been in power for a long time. The US helped put him there, so I find the constant 'rogue nation' quips to be particularly hypocritical.

The US and UK have based their claims for the necessity of war on (a) humanitarian concerns, and (b) Global security.

Dictating the rebuilding process to favor one's own interests smacks to me of 'Unsolicited Services'. Saddam certainly didn't order any business from such companies. At the same time, this regime change will have an effect on both Russia's and France's trade balances. Assuming for the moment that all such business was legitimate under the existing sanctions, how could it then be fair for all post-war business to be US and UK only? How would this help with foreign perceptions of the US and UK? It would be especially hypocritical considering both countries claim to be supporters of the concept of free trade.

If this war really is about liberation, then a representative government should be installed ASAP. And then let *them* choose. If they really are grateful for the liberation, and US/UK products are priced competitively, then surely this would be a better solution.

Actually Haliburton has removed itself from the list of companies bidding on the post-war Iraq govt. contracts.
Wether they did this on their own, or if it was requested of them, I suppose we'll never know.
http://www.msnbc.com/news/892259.asp

Aw, that deadens the Daily Show's hubbub about it They were hilarious when that was announced.

worthless drivel

Mind you i've noticed that a great number of people being interviewed just recently are wearing fetching green, brown and black outfits, which makes a nice change from the old dark business suits.

Quoting from the article:

In reply to:

---

"CDMA is widely recognised as technically superior to European GSM technology. If the US Government deploys US-developed CDMA in Iraq, then American companies will manufacture most of the necessary equipment,"

---

Can someone confirm whether CDMA is actually technically superior? I thought it was inferior because it couldn't pass data as well as voice, or summat like that. Certainly my inability to send a text message to a CDMA phone would argue that it's not the wonder-technology these politicians like to think it is.

If there's one thing that really gets me angry about politicians, it's the way some of them comment on things they wouldn't have a clue about as if they're the new world expert on it. How many science ministers actually have science degrees? (Gareth Evans, former Australian minister for Science, did, but he's the only case I know of).

Overall this is the sort of thing that I expected to come out of the 'war on Iraq'. Not liberation - look what happened to Afghanistan. Just monetary interests being served.

Paul the Cynical

Can someone confirm whether CDMA is actually technically superior? I thought it was inferior

Oh 'eck! Get in your SUVs and head for the hills -- now we got us a flamewar a-comin'!

Peter

Can someone confirm whether CDMA is actually technically superior? I thought it was inferior because it couldn't pass data as well as voice, or summat like that.

Actually the article itself discusses this farther down.

Check out this worthless drivel reprinted in the Austin American Spaceman

Yeah, pretty bad. I will say, though, is that I haven't watched any TV or TV news in 5 or 6 days, ever since I saw Clarke in a pink and grey asymmetrical-patterned suit -- made her look like a villain in a Batman movie.

Now, I'm not *sure* this is why I have stopped watching TV news, but it certainly has *something* to do with it!

As little as I watch the news, I saw the same one!

The funny thing is that she was framed initially (in the boradcast I was watching) half offscreen, and looked normal. Then they panned over when she started talking and showed the grey half. I eeked and about jumped out of my couch. Then I thought, for a second, that my TV had turned B&W on the right half. It took quite a while for that one to sink in.

Can someone confirm whether CDMA is actually technically superior?

I'm sure I'm compleetly wrong in this, but from my understanding CDMA as a technology, is superior to the alternatives because it allows more simultaneous calls in the same bandwidth. It does this by dynamically deciding how much bandwith your conversation needs, as opposed to allocating it a fixed amount for the duration of your call.

Now, GSM as a standard, is far more usefull. Take your phone anywhere and use it. Flip a new sim in your phone, or flip your sim in a new phone and you're set to go. In theory, the next generation of GSM will use CDMA, but it won't be compatible with what we call "CDMA" stateside, which is the Verizon network.

Matthew

Here is the article I read on slashdot that is the basis for all my GSM/TDMA/CDMA knowlege. It was a good read, thought it should be taken with a grain of salt, as it's a ex Qualcomm engineer.

Matthew

Now, I'm not *sure* this is why I have stopped watching TV news, but it certainly has *something* to do with it!

Maybe instead of Ms. Victoria Clarke giving the briefings the Pentagon should get Victoria's Secret to give them.

Maybe instead of Ms. Victoria Clarke giving the briefings the Pentagon should get Victoria's Secret to give them.

Hmmm I think I would not hear any of the dialog if that were the case. My mind would be elsewhere...

>Can someone confirm whether CDMA is actually technically superior?

Sure. I have worked extensively on the R&D side of the cellular industry, and have taught Cellular Technology courses for nearly a decade. No doubt, CDMA is very slick stuff, the best technology I've seen. Kinda like the Sony Beta VCR format when compared with GSM.

GSM is also excellent, but not as versatile as CDMA, or as efficient in use of the airwaves. But it *is* good enough, and is the defacto universal VHS .. er.. digital standard nearly everywhere in the world.

Where the two basically differ is in the channelization scheme. GSM divides the airwaves into 200Khz frequency chunks called "RF channels", and then multiplexes 8 time slots of voice/data within each RF channel. The original North American CDMA scheme uses RF channels of 1.25Mhz each, and uses digital coding to mutliplex up to 20-30 streams of voice/data within each RF channel.

At first glance, it would appear that GSM gets more bang for the bandwidth, but it suffers a common radio flaw in that the same RF channels cannot be re-used in adjacent cells or sectors (a sector is a directional slice of a cell, kinda like a slice of a pie). So for GSM, each RF channel can only be used in every fourth cell or so. With CDMA, each RF channel gets reused in every cell, and even every sector of every cell.. and it actually works better when this is done than it would otherwise.. because the codes are different in each sector/cell, they generally sum to a nice white noise like background, preventing interference and reflections from having as much negative impact as they would have against a quieter or less-even background level.

CDMA improves further as larger RF channels are used -- newer schemes use 5Mhz and 10Mhz channels.

Cheers

Hey. Is there anything you don't actually know about? ATA/IDE, GSM/CDMA...

- Trevor

It's not so much that he knows about this stuff that bothers me. That he's an expert in it is giving me an inferiority complex though

One question, if CDMA is so great, why does VoiceStream use GSM? I roamed quite happily on my various trips to NY and NJ.

Actually the real problem with that article, if all you residents of the USA will forgive me for saying so, is that it's written by an American.

The "Morality Tale" at the end is the bit I'm specifically referring to. He's saying that the governmental process which standardised on GSM in Europe is inherently inferior to the free market of the USA which standardised on CDMA. Now, the wrongness inherent in that governmental process has come back to hurt them and they're having to come begging to a good old American company that's prepared to sell its technology to anyone. But we're not letting those cocky Europeans get our hard-earned knowledge, no way we're not, the free market is protecting itself by making sure that the experience is kept where it's needed most.

Now, play that back the other way around and think of it as the free market in Europe that happened to pick the VCR of the wireless phone world and is now being forced to come to heel and pay the royalties to a big American company. And this big American company, having dominated its own marketplace and by a combination of muscle and back-room deals, is now making sure that all other competitors are crippled by not knowing the best way to implement their networks. So ultimately they hope that everyone will be using Qualcomm everywhere because all the other competitors have been ground into the dust after making the mistakes in the process of implementation.

Gee, now where have I heard that story before? Damn, Internet Explorer has just crashed again, I'm going to have to reboot my Microsoft Windows PC.

Just my two cents worth (which is about 0.015 USD now...)

Have fun,

Paul

P.S. This is actually being written in Netscape on a Sun Solaris workstation. But you get the point...

Easy one.. when the USA PCS spectrum licenses were issued, CDMA was still a mostly theoretical unproven technology, with a few bugs still to be worked out.

GSM at the same time, was already in use in dozens of countries, and seemed (and was) a good choice for digital voice service. As was D-AMPS (without the AMPS portions). Each service area within the USA can have as many as seven digital cellular/PCS carriers (not including the two lower frequency "analogue" bands, on which digital D-AMPS is also now commonplace), each of whom gets to choose the technology they want to use. So it's only natural that several "competing" technologies might be deployed in any given area.

Talk about a nice environment for wireless confusi.. err.. evolution.

Key GSM advantages are roaming and SMS. WAP was not such success, but GPRS with multimedia functionality is growing.

Not only can you take your phone to any European and many other countries and place local SIM chip in it - you can continue using it with your original SIM and hence number (if your provider has roaming agreement with some local provider - and virtually everyone has them with everybody else). I remeber whan few years ago an American busieness partner called me and found me in Rome - the guy thought I must be on satphone.

SMS (short messages - up to 160 characters, but most phones can transparently combine several together) is extremely hot service among European kids. Although one message costs two or three cents, they are major source of income for providers, who then invent new ways to incite customers to use them (e.g. games, dating, sports news, or small paments - for example, in Zagreb I pay parking fee by sending an SMS). Now when SMS niche is pretty much saturated, operators are trying to incite users to send smapshots etc to each other.

Of course, I don't think there are serious technical obstacles for similar services using CDMA. As is very often the case, the point is not the particular technology, but interoperability. However, 'multisitem' hendsets what could be used in both Europe and US are unlikely.

BTW, one of out cellular providers still operates old analog NMT network.

SMS is universal.. all of the digital technologies have it.

But thus far, the SIM seems to be GSM-specific, and a really nice enabler for various features.

Cheers

Although one message costs two or three cents, they are major source of income for providers

I'm not surprised they are a major source of income. In the UK they typically cost 10 pence each, which is about 15 US cents. They must cost well under a cent for the network to send, so they are a total rip off.

...that doesn't stop me sending dozens of them a month though...

So, is the consensus that CDMA is better than TDMA, but GSM specifies more than just the air interface, and as a package is probably superior to 2G CDMA based implementations?

Of course, the Europeans will be adopting WCDMA for their air interface, in whatever they call the 3G version of GSM.

Richard.

yes Paul, we're all greedy american pigs, trying to exploit the rest of the world... Someday we'll have totall world supremacy and will enslave everyone else... All us americans over here feel that everyone else is inferior and our soul purpose on the planet is to make everyone elses life hard. As an American we're taught every other country is ours to exploit and unless your american... well your just not worth the flesh you reside in...

Dude... give the frickin anti US sentiments and conspiracy theoreys a rest...

A large proportion of the world would fail to see any irony in those sentiments. Maybe you guys have a PR problem.

Rob

I don't have a problem with those sentiments, exactly, as long as one is able to separate Americans from America. I somehow don't get the impression that Paul does, but I could be reading into it unfairly.

I guess... sorry to snap like that, it just gets old.... This is probably one of my favorite places on the web. Recently I haven't been able to check the boards without someone flaming the US... Sorry guys it's a great place compared to most other places. I visited Ireland recently, I loved it... everywhere I went I saw posters for guiness beer, most of the bars I went to, the servers would say "Have ya tried the guiness?" yes, and it's great. You don't see me getting pissed when I find guiness in every liquor store or bar I go to? I fail to see eye to eye on most of the anti US arguments, the arguments most people have are about our corporations?? So because our businesses are more global we're a bunch of jerks? Last time I checked corporations were supposed to be successful? I'm sure if your country's businesses succeeded in expanding accross the globe you wouldn't have a problem with it, you might even be proud. Or maybe we suck because our tourists are rude? Last time I checked most tourists from EVERY place in the world are annoying.... Then it comes to foreign policy, yeah, we push ours on others... sometimes I wish we didn't and then I think... if not us who? certainly not the French... I mean jesus, Hussein is over there gassing his own, torturing and in general being the worlds equivalent of a 2 year old on a rampage, but the US is terrible for doing something about it... Then we're jerks because we want to make some of the money back we've lost over stepping up and doing something about the problem (instead of sitting on our butts doing nothing like the rest of the world.. excluding our allies) by trying to rebuild Iraq with american resources. Sorry.... don't see that argument either.

I realize the US is hated by the rest of the world, I think the reasons for this are frickin childish but theres nothing I can personally do about it.

A lot of us on the board are decent people that live in the US. And some of us get pissed after repeated jabs about our country. I'm not even that patriotic and it's getting on my nerves, it become common place to slam the US.

Let me ask you this, if I walked into your home looked at your surroundings and said "wow your house sucks"... would you be offended?

if I walked into your home looked at your surroundings and said "wow your house sucks"... would you be offended?

In response to:

Then it comes to foreign policy, yeah, we push ours on others... sometimes I wish we didn't and then I think... if not us who?

What if I walked into your house and said ``I don't think that you should own this house'', proceeded to beat you up, trashing the house in the process, and then charged you and/or your children for tidying it up?

Otherwise, I mostly agree with what you said.

Good point

In theory, the next generation of GSM will use CDMA, but it won't be compatible with what we call "CDMA" stateside, which is the Verizon network.

My semi-vague memory is that this is so North America wouldn't come into the new standard with a large deployed base, that we'd be screwed like everyone else. (e.g. no technical reasons for it)

I like to pretend I live in a technocracy, and so I ridicule and berate those people.

But then, my friends would say, "He's like that to everyone".

P.S. This is actually being written in Netscape on a Sun Solaris workstation. But you get the point...

The dirty truth comes out.

I hope it's Netscape 6. If it was 4, it not doubt crashed right after you hit "continue".

As an American we're taught every other country is ours to exploit and unless your american... well your just not worth the flesh you reside in...

While my own education about other countries was fairly broad, many people I know tell me where they went to school, they didn't really learn a lot about things beyond the borders of this country.

I don't know how widespread this problem is, but if it is, I shudder to think where foreign policy is going to go in the next generation, given where it is now.

Netscape on a Sun Solaris workstation

The dirty truth comes out.

I hope it's Netscape 6.

I'm using Netscape 7, as supplied by Sun. It still has a few bugs (some quite annoying), and it's hard to get various XPI-type plugins to play nicely, but otherwise works very well. I've yet to have it crash on me except for a few times with Flash or something (I never got to see what it was), and I usually leave it running 24/7.

When Flash crashes it, do you get a strange message on the terminal you ran it from?

if I walked into your home looked at your surroundings and said "wow your house sucks"... would you be offended?

Not really, it's a bit of a dump.

Seriously, I like the US. It's the only country I'd consider moving to (for a while). That's why I think you have a PR problem, not that it really matters as the US is sufficiently powerful to operate regardless of world opinion.

Rob

You pick the most sarcastic thing I said to comment on. When I grew up we had American History, that was it. Thats fine, it's where we live, we also had World Civ... in which we briefly skimmed over world history. I actually learned more about world history through the Art history classes I had in college.

But no, we didn't learn much about world history in general. Thats kind of not my point though, my point is I am a decent person as most americans here... I enjoy where I live, and feel lucky to be here. I'm just sick of having my home bashed for its politics... politics that I'm sorry aren't even that bad compared to some other coutries around the world.

Not really, it's a bit of a dump.

Mine too, I think if it gets any worse I might have to move

That's why I think you have a PR problem

I think Lopan (as did I) misinterpreted that comment as being critical of the US in general instead of the image. One question though, if the US has a such PR problem, why is it that there are so many people trying to get in?

Lopan, it seems to me the most vitriolic attacks of the US on this board are from US citizens.

One question though, if the US has a such PR problem, why is it that there are so many people trying to get in?

Low taxes

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2916133.stm

You know, that particular link is such a poor example.

Despite all the NHS bashing that goes on over there, I prefer it to the system over here. Paying 3.5-9% (salary dependant) only when you are working beats paying significantly more than that when you aren't, in my book anyway. It really sucks when you get laid off to suddenly discover that along with the sudden loss of income, an additional $700 a month expense crops up.
And the crap that you have to deal with every time you change jobs is a pain. New job->New Insurers->Different coverage. Sometimes you have to change doctors, sometimes you have to change pharmacies. What a PITA. And ditto for dentristry. And then add in the fact that the insurers *never* seem to get the coverage dates correct during the transition, you end up having to check that they're not overcharging you, and also make sure that they *do* pay the $300 dentist bill that they should have.

Way too much hassle.

Lopan, it seems to me the most vitriolic attacks of the US on this board are from US citizens.

You made me run for my dictionary:

Vitriol n. ... 2. Bitterly abusive feeling or expression.

I have a hard time thinking of examples that satisfy the definition of "vitriolic" from anyone on the BBS, regardless of nationality.

Example?

Vitriol

Admittedly too strong a word (although not intentionally). I did not look it up before I wrote it. I tend to use it more as strident or vociferous (don't look those up becasue they're not any better). My point was it seems the harshest criticism of the US's policy on this board is from US citizens. Lopan's complaint was directed at nonUS people on the board and to be fair, a fair amount of it is from US citizens.

Apology accepted?

I suppose all of this might have something to do with the claim of "land of the free" (and numerous variants like "Freedom"), when in real life the government freely does stuff like this:

Wired Story

I'm just sick of having my home bashed for its politics... politics that I'm sorry aren't even that bad compared to some other coutries around the world.

So am I. But I'm not going to pick on the people who are right, I'm going to do what I can to change the problem. Pointing at the other people doesn't help vote the people who are screwing up out of office, or get people there who might not piss off so much of the rest of the world.

Well, once nobody called them on civil seizure, they figured they could try the same thing on people instead of property.

My point was it seems the harshest criticism of the US's policy on this board is from US citizens. Lopan's complaint was directed at nonUS people on the board and to be fair, a fair amount of it is from US citizens.

I guess that perhaps the fact that the harshest criticism comes from US citizens is maybe something we should feel good about, yes? Otherwise we'd be griping about how all the criticism comes from those bloody people in (FILL IN SOME OTHER COUNTRY) . I appreciate that your post says "criticism of US policy" as I like to think that we can maintain a distinction between criticism of the country and many swell people as opposed to criticism of (some of) our policies.

Actually, I am personally satisfied if more of the criticism is internal -- would rather feel that we are thrashing our problems out "in the family", so to speak....but it doesn't always work out so neatly.

I really appreciate the diverse, sometime contrary opinions on this BBS. Funny, though, if you took a big map of the world and started to stick pins in it (particularly on a prorated-per-post basis) the pin pattern on the map might start to look like the legacy of the British Empire. U.S., U.K. Canada and "Commonwealth Nations" (Australia, New Zealand). Sure, there's more. The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Switzerland, Sweden (and who am I forgetting???) in Europe and we have seen posts from Brazil, but Bonzi's dispatches from Croatia probably come the closest to someplace "on the edge" - a part of the world that has experienced serious strife.

Not exactly sure where I am going here except to suggest that if this BBS was somehow magically transformed to be truly representative of the diverse opinions of the world, I would bet that there would be a hell of a lot more people on the BBS, for better or worse, crying out about the evil deeds of the US. It would probably be a very difficult place for people from the US to hang out. Me included.

As it is, I can take some of the "anti" chiding and ribbing on the BBS in stride, knowing that most of the folks who throw those darts identify with the ideals that we espouse *in priciple*, have been here and enjoyed their time here, and are inclined to very friendly discourse with us.

I don't want to be too coy. When you say "harshest critics", I am guessing (and without any feeling of acrimony) that you *could* mean.....me!

For what it is worth, just a little confession (or confessions):

On the several occasions that I have seen "Saving Private Ryan", I get horribly choked up when the elder Ryan insists to Mrs. Ryan "Tell me I was good man." Spielberg hit his mark. When we walk down the street and see a frail, gray-haired man in his 80s, we should prepare some respect and consider what simple virtues that old "geezer" may have suffered to defend and what evils their brother may have died to defeat.

Likewise the paean of "Band of Brothers". The figure of citizen soldier Dick Winters (since returned to tending pastures in Pennsylvania) is one that I find simply awe-inspiring.

I guess my problem is that I am afraid that our country has become suffused with a certain (bring up John Williams soundtrack here) Band of Brothers imagery and self-righteousness....that whatever the 101st Airborne is engaged to do ....must be the right thing. Other history since the drop on Normandy (Vietnam, overthrow of Allende, other adventures) gets less press in the collective consciousness.

There's certainly more to it than that. There's no denying that I see fundamental disagreements with most members of our current administration. It is true, there's little that Bush and Company could do that I would not be likely to criticize...because I think I have a very different view of our proper course and because a lot of what they pursue I find to be downright scary. Sooooo, when they formulate a laundry list of rationales for war, I am skeptical.

Anyhow, I am positively *thrilled* that I live in a country where I can take issue with our "leaders" and not get stood up against the wall and shot. I would say that, whenever we get a little tired of people bitching about the US, about France, or about the UK, or about whatever, maybe we should just kick back a bit and think "Hey, isn't it great that that disagreeable SOB didn't get stood up against the wall and shot?"

legacy of the British Empire.

I recall India being among them, also.

but Bonzi's dispatches from Croatia probably come the closest to someplace "on the edge" - a part of the world that has experienced serious strife.

South Africa?

I recall India being among them, also.
.......
South Africa?

Yes, indeed. I was just laying down a mental map of where Empeg BBS posts come from. I didn't remember any Empegs in India, but you have got me wondering if therehave been posts from South Africa (I'm starting to think there have been...)

OK, I guess my broader point is that we don't see posts here from (correct me when I stray, please!) Iraq, Iran, Jordan,Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Uhzbekistan, Afghanistan, Sudan, Kenya, Somalia, Indonesia, the Phillipines, Niger, and many other places. Now, in truth, some of those places like Kenya (and Yemen) are part of the legacy "Oompah" map, but that, I guess, was not the imperfect point I was aiming for.

Not exactly sure where I am going here except to suggest that if this BBS was somehow magically transformed to be truly representative of the diverse opinions of the world, I would bet that there would be a hell of a lot more people on the BBS, for better or worse, crying out about the evil deeds of the US.

We'd have to do a lot more localisation work, too.

Peter

You know, that particular link is such a poor example.
Despite all the NHS bashing that goes on over there, I prefer it to the system over here.

The point is that this is converting National Insurance into a stealth income tax, as it will be charged as an uncapped percentage of income (currently it is capped on the first £30K ish). I would be less aggrieved if I didn't have to buy almost ALL of the NI services privately because the state versions are hopeless.

Healthcare - I would use emergency room service, but have private cover for most in patient and out patient care. I spent several weeks in an NHS ward - NEVER again. Admittedly I've not had cause to use my private cover so far, but it looks OK in the brochure

Dental - It's almost impossible to find an NHS dentist, at least in Cambridge. Have to pay for private care.

Pension - The will be NO state pension to speak of when I retire - my NI contributions are paying for the current generation of retirees, and fact is people are living too long for the system. So, a private pension plan is essential.

Unemployment - Have private cover for forced unemployment i.e. critical illness, injury etc. Otherwise, I know from experience that the Government isn't going to pay out enough to live on for even a month while job searching - but luckily there's no real shortage of jobs here in the south east.

If I thought for a moment that increased NI charges would transform the NHS into a service I would want to use, then that would be fine. I agree that even in its current state the NHS is an outstanding service compared with the free healthcare facilities in many other countries. That's not necessarily saying much, though.

Rob

you have got me wondering if therehave been posts from South Africa

skibum. 101 so far.

There are two of us here in Bangalore. We bought the Empegs during our stay in the SF bay area though.

~Yogi

We'd have to do a lot more localisation work, too.

Peter,

I hope you appreciate what a problem you pose when you offer a response like this. Ignoring it, well, that just wouldn't be fair. On the other hand, attempting to respond to such thoroughly perfected deadpan dry wit will invariably fail to do your comment justice. What is one to do???

Oh, and that's localization, dammit!!

Hell, no need to worry about localisation. We *tried* to make everyone speak English. Their fault if they insist on using pre-colonial languages.

<joke>

There are two of us here in Bangalore.

Hello! and D'oh!, I remember your avatar. So, dbrashear was perhaps offering a friendly BBS-specific correction to my omissions, but I was in to much of a...um...muddle to figure it out. Too much wine with dinner (quite evident as I reread wandering Friday evening posts on Saturday morning!).

As I was sitting typing last evening, I did think of how interesting it would be to create a world Empeg map or globe with "pins" stuck in it.

skibum. 101 so far.

Yup...D'oh!

Heck, Yogi's even got an Empeg Docking Station!

-ml

Yep, it would be interesting. You wouldn't need a lot of pins in South Asia though. Guess I was just lucky to be at the right place (getting paid in the right currency ) at the right time!

Mark, my friend emailed to say that he received it a couple of days back. Thanks! I'm hoping to lay my hands on them before the end of this month.

~Yogi

hey, don't forget Aragon. he appears to be in cape town.

--dan.

I realize the US is hated by the rest of the world, I think the reasons for this are frickin childish...

Brett,

in spite of all its policy of which I have wrote enough here, I cannot hate US, for it consists of Jim and Bitt and Jeff and Tony and another Tony and Doug and you and other hundreds of people here, and hundreds of other people I met in some way, and a coupe of hundreds of milions others I did not but wish I did. But I am perfectly capable of hating, or despising, or being mad at, Bush and his puppeteers, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Perle, Ashcroft, all 'think tanks' that give them illusion of credibility, all Enrons and their Kays, peddlers of Total Information Awareness and DMCA and all their ilk, and I think you should too, more than I do.

...aren't even that bad compared to some other coutries around the world

Brett, it would seem that critics here measure your country according to higher standards then "some other countries". Don't you think that is expected and reasonable?

I voted for Gore... I really thought Clinton/Gore did a kickass job when they were in office. I hate the current president but for some reason don't have a problem with the war. That said, I hate the way this country is being run now... I truly do... I snapped sorry guys

Lopan, it seems to me the most vitriolic attacks of the US on this board are from US citizens.

I dunno, theres a whole lot of it coming from every where

But I know what your saying and honestly I can't decide which bugs me more...