Interesting Links for 30-8-2011

[andrewducker]

• Weird, Birdlike Mystery Drone Crashes in Pakistan
  (tags: technology spying pakistan)
• How Valve Software works. Fascinating interview
  (tags: valve software)
• Let the EDL racists march - By denying one group its right to public protest, the government moves closer to banning us all
  (tags: racism freespeech rights uk police law)
• Part of your brain is hardwired to spot animals (and categorically not Brad Pitt)
  (tags: animals brains)
• Feminist Media Criticism and George R.R. Martin’s A Song Of Ice And Fire
  (tags: feminism criticism GeorgeRRMartin ASongOfIceAndFire GameOfThrones)
• Tron is just too sexy for you.
  (tags: tron video funny)
• Women Fighters In Reasonable Armor - to be taken as an antidote whenever you see a chainmail bikini
  (tags: fantasy art armour women)
• Room-temperature spintronics are on the way.
  (tags: spintronics technology future)
• Masked Anonymous Protesters Aid Time Warner’s Profits.
  (tags: funny business anonymous copyright)
• Guess how well "detox" works. Go on, guess...
  (tags: health placebo)
• Wells Fargo is charging $3 for having a debit card. Other banks to follow?
  (tags: banks banking usa)
• The "overlearning the game" problem - when people use the rules of society against it.
  Any system can be gamed. Any set of rules has loopholes. I'm not sure what can be done about this (except for constant oversight and nerfing).
  (tags: law society learning games rules)
• The basic mistake that Edinburgh made with the trams - they were warned in advance.
  (tags: EpicFail edinburgh trams)
• Catholic Priests not happy that they will have to report child abuse reported in confessions
  (tags: catholicism ireland Child_abuse)
• Racial Profiling First Hand - Aah, security theatre.
  (tags: security_theatre usa)

Comments

[zz]

Let the EDL racists march - By denying one group its right to public protest, the government moves closer to banning us all

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came%E2%80%A6

[andrewducker]

That is pretty much how I feel.

I disagree with the EDL entirely, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't share the same freedom of speech I have.

[philmophlegm.livejournal.com]

You've provided me with the perfect excuse to use this userpic!

[a-pawson.livejournal.com]

The problem is the police and the government know fine that if the march goes ahead there will be violence, especially because of the proposed route. Perhaps an alternative route would be a more sensible compromise, but I suspect even then they know there will be violence.

[andrewducker]

A different route, and charging organisers for a chunk of the costs of policing would seem to be one approach.

What they need is a standard approach for marches, that's public and transparent.

[eatsoylentgreen.livejournal.com]

Here in the US there's banks and there's credit unions, which are essentially nonprofit banks. The credit unions don't charge as many fees.

I take it as a sign of mental illness if someone is not banking at a credit union.

[supergee.livejournal.com]

I always wonder about the overlap between the enema freaks and the natural health people who cleanse themselves with high colonics.

[momentsmusicaux.livejournal.com]

Watching Caractacus has given me a pretty good demonstration of the animal thing. She has been very excited about animals for a long time. Currently, the world divides into:

- parents
- other grown-ups I know well
- animals
- toys
- stuff I can maybe get away with treating like a toy
- food
- other grown-ups
- whatever

In rough order of interest, though this changes according to circumstance.

[momentsmusicaux.livejournal.com]

> The "overlearning the game" problem - when people use the rules of society against it.
Any system can be gamed. Any set of rules has loopholes. I'm not sure what can be done about this (except for constant oversight and nerfing).

I'm surprised nobody sees the obvious answer: it's called sportsmanship, right?

[andrewducker]

Doesn't scale well. Unfunny hard to enforce. Everyone disagrees about where its boundaries are.

[ipslore.livejournal.com]

'Sportsmanship' is just another kind of rule.

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

One of the commenters (Fuzzy) mentioned "gentleman's rules" as used in computer games.

But as Andrew says, doesn't scale well.

[momentsmusicaux.livejournal.com]

I said obvious, not easy ;)

And I'd rather live in a society where we have to carefully debate fair play than one where I keep having to relearn the rules because idiots require us to change them.

[andrewducker]

Is there a difference between constantly debating what "fair play" means and constantly changing the rules?