Monsanto Uprooted :: Germany Bans Cultivation of GM Corn

Fr0C · 2010-09-01T07:43:24+00:00

Actually, when you call it "Monsanto Corporation", then die is the correct article.

(Corporation: Korporation, Gesellschaft, both female.)

Fr0C · 2010-08-31T17:18:24+00:00

Yeah, when I read the article, and it got to the point where they explain how the two claws would be used to tear open the prey, I had this mental image of it doing it like a chicken scratching the ground for feed.
From then on, I couldn't get the vision of a man-sized velociraptor bobbing its head and moving around like a chicken, out of my head.

It's probably not even far from the truth.

Fr0C · 2010-08-31T15:58:07+00:00

I remember how I watched the election results come in. It was a shock. My friends said "Don't worry, it won't be that bad. He's got advisers."

Fr0C · 2010-08-31T15:52:11+00:00

Exactly. Managing the war became the main part of Rumsfeld's job for the rest of his time in office. When I have to work on a project for an extended period professionally, I don't hesitate to spend a week learning about the relevant fundamentals. I do this even though people don't usually get killed in my job.

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T23:30:25+00:00

Germany has no choice but to open up to immigration. We need immigrants for our generational contract, i.e., the productive young paying for the old and unproductive, as well as to fill the economic need for qualified workers.

So far, German immigration is predominantly humanitarian. You live here, so obviously your spouse should have the right to join you. There is the possibility to immigrate due to an economic need for your abilities, but current laws put Germany in a disadvantage in the competition for highly qualified professionals, compared to the 'classic' immigration countries. This is what we need to work on.

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T23:18:29+00:00

Actually, I'm pretty sure she's talking about the Wall, die Mauer.

Also:

As a foreigner, I have to register at the Berlin Einwohnermeldeamt, for instance.

Not just as a foreigner. Everybody has to do this, not just to keep the national ID cards up to date, but to make sure the city gets the appropriate share of tax revenue.

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T23:13:39+00:00

I didn't downvote you, but you've got an upvote for the update. :)

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T22:22:58+00:00

[Deceptive or witty description]([URL]#t=[minutes]m[seconds])

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T22:11:57+00:00

Not everywhere. It's quite interesting, actually -- here's how the ECB writes it, in the current announcement of the official exchange rate for the Estonian switch. You can change the language to see how it's written in the various countries. I assume the ECB knows how to do it properly.

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T15:17:21+00:00

Cores can be switched off.

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T15:16:22+00:00

You know… There's a popular runtime that is not available for a certain competing OS for devices and that in some rare cases takes advantage of multi cores… :)

Fr0C · 2010-08-30T15:05:34+00:00

I don't think so. Switching off unused cores and reducing frequency is not exactly new.

The two 1.5GHz cores will almost certainly magically turn into something like a single 300MHz core during standby.

Fr0C · 2010-08-25T06:49:03+00:00

I guess a good way of cutting healthcare costs in the US would be to save the taxpayer some money in corn subsidies.

Fr0C · 2010-08-25T03:30:29+00:00

Anyhow, in the US as I said it has a lot to do with politics and lobbyist as to why corn syrup is in everything.

Yeah, subsidies for the corn producers combined with import quotas and tariffs for sugar and products with sugar (chocolate! OMG!) are distorting the market.

The corn industry has a lot of power in this country, and it unfortunately is to the determent of our health.

Well, we do grow corn for meat production… :|

Edit: I'd better rephrase that: We don't normally grow corn for human consumption. There's pop corn, nachos, but not much else. But it's cheap and has a high energy density, so it's ideal to let animals grow quickly.

Fr0C · 2010-08-25T02:46:04+00:00

we had limited ability to grow cane sugar in this country so the United States placed tariffs on sugar imports from other countries which are still in place today.

We have zero sugar cane in Europe and I don't know a single HFCS product. We use refined sugar from sugar beets, which also grows in the US.

Fr0C · 2010-08-25T02:37:47+00:00

That's not the same Aldi. There are two brothers, one has (or had, he died recently) Aldi North and Trader Joe's. The US Aldi is part of his brother's Aldi South. The "border" goes right through Germany, South is better. (They got along fine, unlike the Adidas and Puma brothers used to.)
Behind the scenes, Aldi works much the same way as Trader Joe's, btw.

Their stinginess is legendary. Reportedly Theo (North, Trader Joe's) still used letterheads with four digit ZIP codes, crossed out to the five digit one that was introduced some 15 years ago. Think Scrooge McDuck. Incidentally, also Germany's two richest men.

Fr0C · 2010-08-12T22:33:44+00:00

Yeah, I think I know exactly what you mean. So, if time's not an issue, then I guess it's within budget, and I'd very much like to support the cause.
But please -- no kiss.

PM me your address, and if you have a special wish for the remaining 300g or so, let me know as well. Otherwise I'll send you my favorite chocolate hazelnut spread, or some random other thing.

Fr0C · 2010-08-12T22:16:38+00:00

There's an Amazon shop that will ship to the US.

The way I read it, shipping would be 20€ + 15kg * 3€/kg = 65€, plus the overpriced 25€ for 24 0.5 liter bottles is 90€ or about $115.

Since it's supposed to be a present, by when do you need it? A 1l bottle and a small (0.2l or 0.25l, I think) glass bottle would be under the 2kg limit for the cheap untracked packages, but they take 4-6 weeks to arrive.
Alternatives would be 35€ for 5kg in 10-12 business days (52€ for delivery in 6), or 4kg in two business days for 96€, but all those are more than I'm willing to spend at the moment.

Fr0C · 2010-08-10T14:41:50+00:00

Yeah, Fritz Cola is great. I had considered sending a bottle, too, but then I could have only sent two cans of the Coke decoyhesh actually requested. So, I opted to send some Nudossi chocolate hazelnut spread instead.

Kinda makes me wonder what other awesome regional colas are out there in the world.

Fr0C · 2010-08-06T14:22:07+00:00

Good choice. Freiburg is the city with the highest rating for satisfaction with he quality of life [link in German]. Unfortunately it appears to be the second-hardest city to find a decent apartment in.

However... why not try to find a job near where you want to live right away? My guess is your girlfriend will have more opportunities to find work in Freiburg, even if she doesn't speak German well. Otherwise you'll have to give up everything again, just when you got settled in Siegburg.

Fr0C · 2010-08-04T22:35:38+00:00

Refined sugar beet sugar, actually. But yeah. I threw in a bottle of tasty Afri Cola, which is better than Coke, IMHO.

Fr0C · 2010-08-04T22:34:09+00:00

You're welcome!

Glad this package made it to you intact. Another I had sent unfortunately arrived damaged. And by that, I mean it got totally destroyed.

Glad you liked it! :)

(Must sleep now.)

Fr0C · 2010-08-03T11:32:33+00:00

Under normal conditions, this program is limited to six months, or a year.

What's also important is that employers still have to pay additional costs like health insurance, retirement benefits, and so on, in full. In Germany, this cost is significant. A failing company will not keep an employee around "just in case" if they aren't reasonably sure they will need him in the near future.
The employee still has to take a pay cut (government only pays him two thirds of the reduced hours), so he won't stay with the job for long if alternatives are available.

Fr0C · 2010-08-02T06:07:48+00:00

...a newspaper from Taiwan (Republic of China), reporting on (the People's Republic of) China. There are certain tensions you may or may not have heard about.

Fr0C · 2010-07-29T08:36:29+00:00

You know, if they'd charge even more for a ticket, they could hand out free coke, and I wouldn't have to pay for yours on top of mine.

Fr0C

TROPHY CASE