Yes, and I think that's perfectly acceptable. But America specifically isn't so intelligent as that. That is an objection some intellectuals make, but the majority of American's are still isolationist. America refuses to sign cultural agreements, and has for many decades. Where many countries have international and cultural relations departments, America has only the international relations department.
The majority doesn't want America getting involved in anything "Un-American." Whether or not the policies presented represent our nations philosophies.
No, it's because a global government takes the decisions further away from the people and needs for bigger more invasive government policies and laws.
I seriously doubt these politicians were worried about taking decisions away from the people, yes that's a problem with a Global Government, but I was just talking about the likely reason for this being objected by the government, not objected by the masses.
Where many countries have international and cultural relations departments, America has only the international relations department.
And that's perfectly fine, methinks. You cannot force people to relate to others (be it their neighbours or completely different cultures) if they don't want to. When you have international and cultural departments you are effectively making people relate to others, sometimes against their will. Maybe I'm being a bit extremist, but when you have a department working with people's money using it to stablish relations with people from other countries, you're basically making the people relate to the people from the other countries via their money.
Sure, one should promote diversity and integration and all that, but by convincing people of their virtues, not by decreeting it.
The point of cultural relations in other countries is to establish a relationship between the citizens of two countries. Whereas international relations is intended only for country to country communication. The fact is that many Americans are unwilling to even communicate with foreigners. We're an isolationist society and we're turning xenophobic. Americans shouldn't be complaining about policies becoming harder for us to control, if the US wants to be a superpower, or even a major power for much long it must be willing to talk to those it claims to protect.
(CNN) -- A competitor has died and another is in hospital following a tragic end to the World Sauna Championships in southern Finland.
Russian Vladimir Ladyzhenskiy died Saturday after taking part in the final of a competition in which contestants are required to withstand rising temperatures for as long as possible.
Finnish finalist Timo Kaukonen was also taken to hospital for treatment, organizer Ossi Arvela said in a statement posted on the event's website.
Images of the contest showed Ladyzhenskiy and Kaukonen sitting side by side in the sauna. Both contestants can then be seen lying on the ground, apparently doused in water. Ladyzhenskiy appears to be suffering from severe skin burns.
"The event was interrupted immediately after the accident. Competition organization grieves these sad events," Avela said.
Finnish police and organizers are investigating the incident, Arvela said. But he said first aid personnel had been in place and all competitors taking part in the contest had provided doctor's certificates. "All the rules were followed," he said.
The World Sauna Championships take place annually in the town of Heinola.
This might also be placed in the nonexistent Darwin Awards thread.
A Texas state trooper stops a 1990 Mercedes with an expired registration sticker. The driver says he does not have his driver's license or proof of insurance. After arresting him for "failure to identify," the trooper searches him and his car, finding 14 grams (half an ounce) of marijuana and hashish. Indicted for possession with intent to deliver, he could be sent to prison for the rest of his life.
Does it matter that the defendant is a 20-year-old asthmatic who obtained the cannabis with a doctor's recommendation in California? Not under Texas law, which prohibits the use of marijuana for any purpose. And the situation in which Chris Diaz finds himself would be outrageous even without the medical angle. Senior Trooper Sparky Dean explains how a routine traffic stop turned into a potential life sentence:
The car had an expired registration. That could have been a citation and sent him [Diaz] down the road. He had no license or proof of insurance. Again, that could have been a citation. He had two ounces of marijuana, and that could have been a citation. But he had a controlled substance and he wouldn’t identify himself. [Trooper] Martin [Molotsky] had to arrest him.
Seriously? No matter what your view of the war on drugs, the leap from citable offense to first-degree felony is hard to fathom, let alone justify. In Texas, according to Dean, half an ounce of marijuana can get you anything from a ticket to life in prison, depending on factors that have nothing to do with the moral gravity of the offense. Although Diaz's cannabis was still in the bottles used by the medical marijuana dispensary where he obtained it, Brown County prosecutors cite a cell phone "containing text messages referring to drug sales" and a notebook with "drug and law writings" as evidence of intent to deliver. They put the retail value of the cannabis at $2,400, or $171 per gram—more than 10 times the hash prices reported at 420 Magazine and Grass City. Diaz has been held in the Brown County Jail since June 27, with bail set at $40,000.
In case you're wondering whether cannabis is an effective treatment for asthma, you can find discussions of that issue here and here.
Addendum: Texas law puts hashish ("resinous extractives of Cannabis") in Penalty Group 2, making possession of four to 400 grams with intent to deliver a first-degree felony, which carries a possible life sentence. Mere possession of four to 400 grams is a second-degree felony with a maximum sentence of 20 years. By contrast, the maximum penalty for delivering a quarter ounce to five pounds of marijuana is two years, while merely possessing two ounces or less is a Class B misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of three months in jail. So according to the state of Texas, cannabis resin is 50 to 80 times as bad as cannabis buds, even though its THC content is 20 times higher at most. That's comparing crappy marijuana to high-quality hash. If you compare high-quality marijuana to crappy hash, the difference in THC content can be small to nonexistent. But in Texas it still can be the difference between a slap on the wrist and a long prison term.
Are the laws against marijuana not as harsh in other states? I'm never in any possession of marijuana, but I know people who carry quite a bit on them at any time; I was under the impression that every cop would be that harsh if they found more than a tiny bit of weed on you. If you have enough to make it look like you sell, you're in deep shit.
And give me a break; that guy was DEFINITELY dealing.
I know people who would pay a lot of money (and have paid a lot of money) for medical marijuana from California. It's stronger than the more common strains in Texas.
Half an ounce is quite a bit, isn't it? I'm more familiar with dealing with grams, and if it's a really good quality marijuana prices can be around 30 bucks for a gram, if not more. You could make a GOOD deal of money from half an ounce of medical marijuana. I still say he was dealing.
So at an estimated cost of $50k a year to incarcerate a prisoner, times an estimated 55 years or so of life left, let's spend $2,750,000 dollars to lock him up for life.
So at an estimated cost of $50k a year to incarcerate a prisoner, times an estimated 55 years or so of life left, let's spend $2,750,000 dollars to lock him up for life.
Hey, hey, HEY NOW. I didn't say I agreed with the law at all. Alls I'm saying is he was probably dealing, and I'm not surprised at the results. I've always been under the impression you're in DEEP shit if you get caught with weed. Isn't this true in all states?
Perhaps. But then, you could be lying to throw me off your trail...I'M ON TO YOU!
I could be clever enough to think of something like that, but I'd never have the social skills to pull it off. I have nearly a 100% failure rate on my attempts at subtle manipulation.
Comments
The majority doesn't want America getting involved in anything "Un-American." Whether or not the policies presented represent our nations philosophies.
I seriously doubt these politicians were worried about taking decisions away from the people, yes that's a problem with a Global Government, but I was just talking about the likely reason for this being objected by the government, not objected by the masses.
Zomg they want to get people on bikes!!! ITS A TAKEOVER BY THE UN!!!
And that's perfectly fine, methinks. You cannot force people to relate to others (be it their neighbours or completely different cultures) if they don't want to. When you have international and cultural departments you are effectively making people relate to others, sometimes against their will. Maybe I'm being a bit extremist, but when you have a department working with people's money using it to stablish relations with people from other countries, you're basically making the people relate to the people from the other countries via their money.
Sure, one should promote diversity and integration and all that, but by convincing people of their virtues, not by decreeting it.
This might also be placed in the nonexistent Darwin Awards thread.
Are the laws against marijuana not as harsh in other states? I'm never in any possession of marijuana, but I know people who carry quite a bit on them at any time; I was under the impression that every cop would be that harsh if they found more than a tiny bit of weed on you. If you have enough to make it look like you sell, you're in deep shit.
And give me a break; that guy was DEFINITELY dealing.
Half an ounce is quite a bit, isn't it? I'm more familiar with dealing with grams, and if it's a really good quality marijuana prices can be around 30 bucks for a gram, if not more. You could make a GOOD deal of money from half an ounce of medical marijuana. I still say he was dealing.
Hey, hey, HEY NOW. I didn't say I agreed with the law at all. Alls I'm saying is he was probably dealing, and I'm not surprised at the results. I've always been under the impression you're in DEEP shit if you get caught with weed. Isn't this true in all states?
I can't tell if you were intentionally trying to be hilarious or not. I know a lot of people who would risk going to jail for 420.
FO-TWENTY TWENTY FO SEVEN YO
I'm also trying to think if you suggested the price of 30 dollars as a setup now. Could you possibly be THAT clever?
I could be clever enough to think of something like that, but I'd never have the social skills to pull it off. I have nearly a 100% failure rate on my attempts at subtle manipulation.