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Fred Bauder

User Profile Image Fred Bauder
Member since : May-23-2009 (Verified)
0 Ideas, 13 Comments, 22 Votes

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Fred Bauder 9 months ago
I'm not real happy that a bug in the software resulted in me being able to vote on this matter. I certainly didn't vote for it.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
Yes, grab hold of that third rail...
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
There is no substitute for competence. To be sure schools are used for many secondary purposes other than education, but any change, such as more student control or defining of goals, must not hinder the core mission of education, development of competence.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
Now, if someone can't keep track of what's going on and presents you with a word salad instead of talk, then sure, don't employ them. What is the deal with one man smoking marijuana and being President of the United States, and another doing the same thing being treated as an outcast.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
You're not wrong, but too much and poorly presented.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
The use of propriety software when there are suitable alternatives is inappropriate. At times, the federal government has actively aided monopoly practices that are not in the public interest. If you want to give money to political supporters, just appropriate money and send them a check.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
The traditional way it works is that someone is elected using the funds provided by their political patrons; they then do the will of those patrons while rendering lip service to their nominal constituents. Here, if that process were to be followed, the patrons would task their employees and lobbyists to influence the process, much in the manner attempts are made to manage any public relations problem such as the content of a Wikipedia article.
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
drwtwilner wrote "One life is worth around $40,000, based on the average amount of life insurance people have." Yet, I suspect an offer of $40,000 for your life would be refused. Should a decision maker use such a guide in determining whether safety measures are appropriate? The problem with cost benefit analysis is that whoever is doing the analysis is quite likely to assign low values to what they don't like and high values to what they do. I had not voted yet, but I definitely "have some questions"
Fred Bauder 9 months ago
You say "Due to a clerical error in the Supreme Court header notes of a decision made in the late 1800s, corporations have been granted all the rights of people."

More likely the decision was intentional. If I remember, probably don't, the decision was roughly based on the fact that the interests of actual people stand behind corporate actions.

I wonder though if some of the more bizarre interpretations of equal protection protection being extended to corporations were wise. After all the 14th amendment was obviously intended to deal with the problems of former slaves, not global corporations.
Fred Bauder 10 months ago
Occasionally testimony contains personal information that ought not be public, as do court documents which presumably would also be easily accessible.
Fred Bauder 10 months ago
I do well on the internet and like the little bit of extra influence it brings. However, going too far disenfranchises those who can't or decline to participate. Computer literacy needs to be part of the elementary school curriculum. At some point it will be expected of every citizen.
Fred Bauder 10 months ago
Often neither costs nor benefits are easily quantifiable, or, if they are quantifiable are not so by quantification of the central concerns involved. For example, it is relatively easy to quantify the cost of a safety measure, but not the benefit of the lives it saves; it is not infinite, but not de minimus either.
Fred Bauder 10 months ago
The worst offense is the ubiquitous use of the Microsoft word processing format which produces documents in the .doc format. Adequately viewing such a document requires purchase of the program from Microsoft at a substantial price.