i suppose introductions are in order ...

[Culann]

Internet voting would make sense, provided they can keep the hackers out.

To clarify what I said earlier, I did not say voting is always totally useless. It simply tends to lose its most of its effectiveness once people, both voters and candidates, realize how to work the system. This particular election is not "totally useless" for me, because there is finally a non-mainstream candidate that is making a good showing, despite everyone's best attempts to squash him. It's just that someone who is genuinely different than the competition rarely, if ever, shows up with enough force to make a large difference.
I really need to get a blog so I don't keep ranting here.

[Tamlin]

Originally Posted by Culann

I really need to get a blog so I don't keep ranting here.

No - that's what we need - more ranting! We'll break that 866-post record yet!

[unleash]

Originally Posted by tamlin

Er...unleash, you're not getting Estonia confused with Zimbabwe, are you?

Oops

Excuse me, I did indeed........

anyway(yeah Im trying to forget this) the ussr isn't completely disbanded turvas, the current "president" is trying to get it all back together...well poetin is

[turvas]

His name is Putin and he couldn't get his shoelaces tied if he didn't have a whole ministry to do that for him.
USSR is disbanded. All that is left are a bunch of countries whose politicians are afraid of Russia or influenced by Russia. And ofcourse the countries who aren't influenced at all or are a little. There is all kinds of different stuff (not to say a word that starts with sh and ends with it), but the "glory" and the power of the USSR and the people involved are pretty much gone. Atleast here, that is.

//Sidenote: New sig just for the bästardly.

[kokopedal]

Speaking of Sigs, I'll use this untill the CIA and FBI come looking.

[unleash]

Originally Posted by turvas

His name is Putin and he couldn't get his shoelaces tied if he didn't have a whole ministry to do that for him.
USSR is disbanded. All that is left are a bunch of countries whose politicians are afraid of Russia or influenced by Russia. And ofcourse the countries who aren't influenced at all or are a little. There is all kinds of different stuff (not to say a word that starts with sh and ends with it), but the "glory" and the power of the USSR and the people involved are pretty much gone. Atleast here, that is.

True, but if they listen to russia, then they are under its influence. And if they are afraid enough to do exactly like russia says(like naming an pro-russia president every election) than I think that the USSR is not gone.

It indeed is no longer a country like the US is. But that mentality is still left in the government, and with that, in the country....

Originally Posted by turvas

//Sidenote: New sig just for the bästardly.

Thank you turvas!

[turvas]

It's only in the older parts of the governments. Now when a new generation is slowly taking over, it is just growing out.

[unleash]

Originally Posted by turvas

It's only in the older parts of the governments. Now when a new generation is slowly taking over, it is just growing out.

true...but what I meant was that the concept of the USSR still lives on, the USSR was a huge country with enough resources to take on the US, and it was communistic.

take china, who will be probably even bigger than the USSR ever was! Bigger army, bigger money, bigger country, bigger power.....The US also has a pretty big loan from china, which they cannot pay back in a year or so. And every moment that the US fights "terrorism" that loan becomes bigger and bigger!

[turvas]

Your US problems do not concern me. All the problems the capitalists have, they have made for themselves. A good place to use my moto for life:
I forgot to give a f*ck.

[Culann]

Originally Posted by unleash

true...but what I meant was that the concept of the USSR still lives on, the USSR was a huge country with enough resources to take on the US, and it was communistic.

The Russian commies literally couldn't wipe their own rears, because they couldn't figure out how to co-ordinate anything, like toilet paper. Maybe they had the resources available, but they had no idea how to use them effectively, since they abandoned the free market. They would not have been able to feed and equip their own army, since they could barely feed the civvies.

Originally Posted by unleash

take china, who will be probably even bigger than the USSR ever was! Bigger army, bigger money, bigger country, bigger power.....The US also has a pretty big loan from china, which they cannot pay back in a year or so. And every moment that the US fights "terrorism" that loan becomes bigger and bigger!

China is in the same boat; they probably couldn't attack us directly, but their "dollar sponge" tactics (a) let them send us any surplus and (b) pay us for anything they need. We kind of have each other in a stalemate: All they have to do to hose us is stop taking US dollars. Then the dollar spirals into oblivion (since we just won't stop printing them) and our economy goes belly-up. (You can figure out that I'm American.) On the other hand, if we stopped trading with them so much, they would no longer be able to use us as a crutch when they mess up with their own economy.
My personal prediction is that when our economy fails, we will take China with us.

I agree totally with your implicit statement that the war on terror is going to cause us issues. More issues than I care to think about...

[supertackyman]

yeah, but leave it to some idiot to take currency speculation too far and blow a million dollars or so. causing a domino effect that f*cks the euro up too.

I'm putting all my money in "swift kick in the ass" stock,
its product is available worldwide, in constant demand, and has plenty of volunteer distributors.

what the world needs is a good, swift kick in the ass.
if we humans only spent 1/2 the money we spend on tools of destruction, on international relations instead. perhaps most conflicts could be avoided altogether.

[unleash]

About china, the problem is that china has the recources and we have to ideas. And since "free market" stands for "follow the money" all the smart ass people will go to china some day....as that is where the money is at, especially for the technicians....

Originally Posted by supertackyman

I'm putting all my money in "swift kick in the ass" stock,
its product is available worldwide, in constant demand, and has plenty of volunteer distributors.

I know of some people who could really use a good kick in the ass...maybe I have to contact that company of your STM

Originally Posted by Turvas

Your US problems do not concern me. All the problems the capitalists have, they have made for themselves. A good place to use my moto for life:
I forgot to give a f*ck.

So what's your stratagy when it comes to economics? Communism? Back to trading instead of buying?

[Tamlin]

Originally Posted by turvas

Your US problems do not concern me.

Maybe not directly, but since they are the most powerful nation on earth any "problems" the US has, eventually has a knock-on effect for just about everyone. They may not concern you, but they will affect you (one way or another).

Originally Posted by unleash

So what's your stratagy when it comes to economics? Communism? Back to trading instead of buying?

My guess is turvas's strategy is something like:

I am an antichrist
I am an anarchist
Dont know what I want
But I know how to get it
I wanna destroy passers by

[turvas]

Originally Posted by tamlin

My guess is turvas's strategy is something like:

Seriously, don't open your mouth if you have no idea what you are talking about. There is a pretty damn big difference between anarchism and satanism.

[supertackyman]

Yeah tamlin! one starts with an "S" the other starts with an "A"
Ghaaawwd!