Industrial hemp is vastly superior to replacements like cotton. It's definitely not the same variety of plant as marijuana. But it can sometimes be hard for law enforcement to tell the difference.

It's kind of funny to see myself talking about this though. XD

Post last edited by Mush on 01.22.2014, 01:06 AM.

Sorry! A major deadline doth approach.

I actually already finished the Black Rose Saga but I haven't yet posted about it. Will be looking to get the Apocalypse arc when I have time, though. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten!

Review will have to wait for a while...

quote:

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Originally posted by saviour2012
i think i agree with what you say. with one exception fight against drugs or anything bad can be won.

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I think it can too, but law enforcement is not necessarily the answer. Social pressure and family support is probably the best way to do it. I think that's also what you think.

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If it were me, I would go for the latter option. An enjoyable, exciting job where the work is its own reward is worth at least twice the paycheck (and will probably increase your lifespan). Unless you need the money, like if you have loans to pay off, in which case the paycheck matters more.

Letting go of a dream is hard. If you choose the stable job, you might work there for the rest of your life and be happy, but always wonder what the other option would have been like. If you choose the risky one, you might be finding yourself unemployed again in one year and looking for jobs, but at least you'll know what it was like. Then you can pick a stable job with no regrets. Or maybe you'll have enjoyed it so much that you'd want to dive back in to another risky offer.

Also, it's more likely that if the small company tanks and you lose your job, you'll be able to switch to the multi-national firm. That offer sounds like a patient one that will be around next year. The other one might vanish.

From a career-building perspective, they both will probably offer a good educational experience. The big company will have a lot of experienced people with connections, and the little one will probably have a lot of technically-demanding work that will teach you a lot.

I think a stable career is really important if you have a family that you have to support. If you don't, then you are much more free to take risks with fewer consequences.

Good luck!

Post last edited by Mush on 01.20.2014, 11:01 AM.

Husky, I don't think you get told this often enough. For some reason, reading these stories about your life is so comforting and makes me feel like everything will turn out OK.

I guess at my age it's so easy to get sucked into a short-term view like a vortex. Since it's been several years since I was in a relationship, while almost all of my friends are finding long-term partners, I was starting to wonder if I'm doing something wrong and whether I'll be alone all my life. I've been making more of an effort recently, but people who are interesting to me don't come around very often. Not ones who are single, at least.

But reading your post feels like taking a deep breath of fresh air and getting a view from high up.

Just thought I'd mention that. ^^

Drugs are bad. Don't use them.


I agree a lot with Fen's philosophy that consenting adults can decide what to do if it doesn't harm other people. But Saviour has a very good point that it's easy to make bad decisions you'll later regret if there's a tacit endorsement of those decisions by society. Not everyone using drugs is a responsible adult who understands the consequences of using drugs.

And I don't look forward to seeing headlines of car accidents caused by drivers who were high on marijuana. Not that that's any worse than drunk driving, mind you.


I do wonder about legalization, though. I wonder whether it will increase the amount of drugs consumed, or whether it might not do that. It seems like the drugs being illegal has not been an effective deterrent so far, maybe because if someone is irresponsible enough to be using drugs, they aren't thinking about potential negative consequences already. They probably don't imagine themselves getting arrested, just like they probably don't imagine themselves becoming addicted. (I actually do think that marijuana might be an addictive substance, not least because I have a friend who struggled with quitting. I haven't read the latest research though).

Also, criminalization of drugs does have severe societal consequences of its own, possibly as bad as the consequences of drug consumption itself. For example, a lot of young people end up in prison. At that point, those kids' lives are effectively condemned -- the chances that they'll go on to become productive members of society (let alone president of the USA) are significantly lower, and the chances they'll become criminals goes way up. It doesn't help that there's a major racial bias in the USA regarding who ends up in prison for using drugs. And criminalization spawns a black market that supports criminal gangs and smugglers, which leads to a major increase in violence.


So, anyway, I don't know for sure whether it's a good thing or not. I think there's a strong enough argument in favour of legalization that it would be worth experimenting with the policy to actually measure the outcomes and see what happens. The nice thing about this kind of issue is that it can be tested and, if it turns out to be a bad idea, the drugs can be made illegal again.


Sort of like how they experimented with making alcohol illegal in the 1920s.


Along a somewhat-related note, in Vancouver we introduced a safe-injection program, which was a clinic run by the government that offered a safe place for cocaine addicts to inject drugs. Although the drugs themselves are still illegal, the main problem was that addicts were sharing contaminated needles and contracting terrible diseases like HIV. The program was very controversial and has been closely studied since its introduction, but overall the results have been extremely positive. Drug use has not increased, and addicts are dying less and committing fewer crimes. The police have been strongly supportive of the program.


Basically, it's a complicated issue -- even if you're strongly opposed to drug use (like I am), it doesn't necessarily mean that legalization is a bad policy decision.


Edit: Sorry that I haven't had time to read this full thread and take everyone's argument into account. Hopefully I can come back to it later.

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Post last edited by Mush on 01.20.2014, 10:36 AM.

I think this is mainly an article about Shinichiro Watanabe and his new series, rather than a complete review of the impact of anime culture on the West.

It was a good read, though.

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Of course, don't spend too much time watching anime when you have work to do!

But there will always be days when you can't work, so keep a watchlist for those days... even if you end up adding to the list faster than you can watch things.

Anyway, I'll recommend 'Psycho Pass' for you saviour, if you can put up with occasional gruesome murders. I just recently watched it. It's not very impressive at the start, and I thought at first that it was a weak Ghost-in-the-Shell impersonation more interested in its technology than its characters. But it becomes very compelling by about halfway through. And toward the end, I think it would even be philosophically interesting to you in particular.

True, but a hang glider also doesn't have an engine... Still, it clearly does work, so it's not like I'm saying it shouldn't be possible. I'm just interested in how they managed to pull it off. ^^

When I look at just the shape of it, I don't have an intuitive feeling that it looks stable. But when I see it move on video, it doesn't seem at all like it's on the verge of flipping over and going out of control. So either they're doing some kind of trick to stabilize it, or else my intuition is totally wrong.... which of course is very possible ^^||

Well, Nausicaa is crazy athletic... Also I imagine that flowing air would make it a little easier to keep her legs straight.

I'm quite amazed by its stability too! Because the Mehve doesn't have a tail, I imagined that stability would be a big problem... It's basically a flying wing. It's possible that they have computer control help stabilize it, but I also find that pretty unlikely because it seems like it would run counter to the whole philosophy behind a project like that, and a vehicle that you steer with your body weight? So maybe they were just really careful with the wing design and centre of gravity?

Anyway, it's really cool stuff. I've been casually following their page for a while but I was totally blown away when I saw it take off.

Speaking of planes, did anyone already post the Mehve project update?

How to Disappear Completely (live) by Radiohead. These guys can really be amazing.

quote:

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Originally posted by Roarkiller
Omikuji? I thought only school girls are into those luck stuff. Also, don't you think that the chances of getting great luck is equal to great misfortune? Which means pulling great luck could just as well mean great misfortune too, mathematically.

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It means, in order to draw great luck, you must already have great luck.

Whoa.

No rest for the wicked. The rest of campus is on holiday, though.

あけましておめでとう！＼(^‿^)ノ
How long of a break do you get, Orphic?

Post last edited by Mush on 01.01.2014, 07:34 PM.

quote:

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Originally posted by Saddletank
I still haven't got used to your zombie eyes avatar. What was wrong with cute old Aoi?

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Happy new year!

Happy new year and best wishes for 2014, everyone!

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I want chocolate ice cream but all the stores are closed for boxing day! Now I feel foolish for not waiting for after the holidays to confess. So I'm just eating lots of cereal and watching sappy movies. I think it's working...

quote:

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Originally posted by Roarkiller
There are those times. It's what stops me from confessing to anyone at all

LL: So apparently no art shop in Singapore carries laser transfer foils. I need it for my project. Also, my plastic sheets aren't melting through the laminator, even at 190C.

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Post last edited by Mush on 12.27.2013, 01:09 AM.

Ah, River is probably my favourite Joni Mitchell song.

Can't hurry love - the Supremes

I guess I'm starting to feel better

Thanks, everyone. Ugh. I just can't seem to do anything right now other than moping around and napping and sniffling. I really need to stop thinking about this...

Just... argh. Oh well. I'll feel better tomorrow, and maybe I'll be able to get something done.