Berkeley CSUA MOTD:2003:July:31 Thursday <Wednesday, Friday>
Berkeley CSUA MOTD
 
WIKI | FAQ | Tech FAQ
http://csua.com/feed/
2003/7/31 [Uncategorized] UID:29188 Activity:nil
7/30    Faaaaab-u-lous!
        http://www.bettybowers.com/isbushgay.html
2003/7/31 [Politics/Foreign/Asia/China, Politics/Foreign/Asia/Taiwan] UID:29189 Activity:very high
7/30    Pentagon: China Aiming Missiles at Taiwan
        http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=4&u=/ap/20030730/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_china_military_2
        \_ China has been aiming missiles at Taiwan since they got their first
           missile.  This isn't news.  It also isn't news that they're going
           to invade as soon as they think they can pull it off.
           \_ China won't invade.  They'll consider it if Taiwan has a
              sovereignty referendum.  The U.S. will prevent Taiwan from doing
              that.  The U.S. and China both prefer the status quo.
              \_ Put another democrat in office and they will if they feel they
                 have the military might to do it.  China sure as hell does not
                 prefer the status quo.  It's a humiliation and international
                 embarassment.
                 \_ Laughably untrue.  PRC gets a lot of money in transfers
                    from Taiwan.  It's not worth their while to kill the
                    goose that lays the golden egg.  If the Brits hadn't
                    made their silly 99-year lease deal, PRC would not have
                    annexed Hong Kong either, for the same reasons.  Let's
                    face it:  PRC puts on a good show of pushing a state-run
                    economy, but they prefer the riches that capitalist
                    throat-cutting brings in.
                    \_ you have no clue don't you?
                    \_ contrary to what you may think, the Brits had no
                       choice. Just like how they lost most of their
                          \_ evil is what evil speaks.
                       colonies.
                       \_ those f***ing brits have yet to paid for their
                          crime for colonizing half of the globe. fuck them!
                 \_ IMO, Taiwan is the rebellious child that China can
                    smack around when it gets tired of anti-U.S. propaganda.
                    I don't see the Taiwan issue as very humiliating for China,
                    especially when so many companies continue to move
                    operations from Taiwan to China.
                    \_ agree, and I am from Taiwan.
                    \_ For the cheap labor, not their technical expertise or
                       management ability.  The mainland is being used as the
                       third world country that it is.
                       \_ how do you breathe with your head in the sand?
                          don't you get sand in your snorkel?
                       \_ I'm just waiting for their brand spanking new dam
                          to break, killing millions (they've already been
                          reports of shoddy worksmanship on the project)
                          \_ evil is what evil speaks. -dubya
                          \_ you know, you really should shut up or you really
                             expose your ignorance on this subject.  The
                             mainland has techno-superiority over Taiwan
                             in many ways.
                             \_ In exactly what way did I imply any techno
                                comparison of China with Taiwan? Maybe you
                                should try rereading my post before arguing
                                with a point that is nonexistent.
                  \_ insufficient heavy lift/transport to hold the island b4
                     forces from the 7th fleet repel the invasion
                  \_ I heard even Australian navy can beat PRC navy.
                     \_ you've heard many things my child.
                        \_ Actually the guy is right.  PRC navy is inferior
                           to Australia's.  They only have a chance if it
                           is close to China's coast such that China's
                           air force and land-based missiles can play
                           a role.
                           \_ so how exactly is B*** admin going to hype
                              up the China threat thing again??
2003/7/31 [Uncategorized] UID:29190 Activity:nil
7/30    It is so cute watching all the little Taiwanese fobs get worked up
        about big bad China.
2003/7/31 [Uncategorized] UID:29191 Activity:nil
7/30    [white boy/asian sister thread censored. -hoyt]
        \_ I actually grepped the passwd file for hoyt.  I was hoping he
           was really here.  Too bad he's not.  Good joke, though.
2003/7/31-8/1 [Reference/Tax] UID:29192 Activity:very high
7/31    401k people retiring in 30 years, so what if income tax is
        50% in 30 yrs, should I just take the 30% hit now?
        \_ If the income tax is 50%, it'll be time for the revolution.
          \_ Income tax used to go to 70% when I was a kid and I believe it was
           \_ Canada's @ 50% now.
             as high as 90% at one point but I'm not certain of that one.  50%
             was a Reagan era tax cut down from 70%.
             \_ For the top bracket.  google for "history marginal income tax"
          \_ amen to that!
          \_ I think you need more important things to worry about in your
             life.
             \_ More than the right to own property?  There are few things more
                important.
                \_ actually there are a lot of things more important
                   \_ like paying high taxes so you can stay in school forever
                      and Fight Against The Man?
                      \_ who da man?
                   \_ I can think of two: life and liberty.  But that still
                      qualities as 'few'.
                        \_ Life and liberty are tantamount to the right
                           to own property.  They are inextricably linked.
                           \_ Tantamount? You should look up big words
                              before you try to use them in a sentence
                              and embarass yourself like that.
                              \_ embarass? you should spell check big words
                                 before you go around dissing other people.
                                 -not the tantamount guy
                \_ Like the need for a booty call tonight.
        \_ The idea is that your tax bracket will be smaller then. It's
           entirely possible you may do well and be in a HIGHER tax bracket
           then. The major advantage to a 401k is that you pay no tax on
           capital gains and dividends so that money can grow tax-free. --dim
           \_ You missed the point, which is that with the way things are
              going, those with income may be paying much higher rates to
              support the SS/medicare/fat bloated budget.  So pay the taxes
              now while they're 'cheap.'
              \_ I did not miss the point. You did. "The major advantage to
                 a 401k is that you pay no tax on capital gains and dividends
                 so that money can grow tax-free." --dim
        \_ Guess what - none of your money is safe.  When SS starts to fail the
           ~ 2013 the Fed is going to retroactively tax all of the 'tax exempt'
           investment and retirement accounts.  By that time guns will be
           outlawed, the UN will lord over America, narcisistic and secular
           America will have reverted to tribalism, and there will nothing
           you peons will be able to do.
           \_ In spite of all your gloom and doom predictions, SS will be fine.
              Raising the retirement age to 70 will make it solvent for the
              next 75 years.
              \_ Wow, and since the life expectancy for males is 74.1, I'll
                 really be able to enjoy those years.  The true test of whether
                 congress really has balls is if the retirement age is higher
                 than the life expectancy.
                 \_ http://www.ssa.gov/history/lifeexpect.html
                    Congress has already raised the SS full benefits age from
                    65 to 67 for those born after 1960.
2003/7/31 [Computer/Domains] UID:29193 Activity:nil
7/31    How does http://enom.com make money off domain registrations? They charge
        $5.95/yr, but I heard Internic's cut is $6/yr. Loss leader or was I
        misinformed about Internic?
        \_ Internet economy math.
2003/7/31-8/1 [Finance/Investment] UID:29194 Activity:moderate
7/31    Does "current account deficit" == "trade deficit"?  I kind
        of understand how it affects forex rates, but does it also
        have an effect on bond yields and bond prices?
        \_ No, trade deficit is just the difference in goods and
           services, while current account deficit also includes
           investment. It has an effect on bond prices because
           \- hello i believe that is sort of misleading.
              i have left a somewhat extended comment at:
              ~psb/trade-accounting.txt. ok tnx. --psb
           some of the imported/exported money goes to the bond
           market. In the US for example, most imported money is
           used to buy treasuries. It is different in other
           countries. -ausman
2003/7/31-8/1 [Politics/Domestic/California, Finance/Investment] UID:29195 Activity:high
7/31    How does the US government make up for its budget deficit?
        Does it print the money or does it borrow money?  If borrow
        money, how does it do it?  Is it through what they call
        "treasury notes"?  And how does that relate to the "Fed
        interest rate" used for stimulating/cooling the economy?
        Is it possible that there would not be enough interest in
        the "treaury notes or whatever" due to interest rate
        being too low such that the government is forced to raise
        the rates to finance its budget deficit?
        \_ The US government borrows money from the treasuries market, yes.
           There is no direct relation between the Fed overnight rate
           and the bond rate. Government demand for borrowed money
           pushes up interest rates.
           \_ When people buy trearuries, where does the money go?
              Does the Fed just keep the money in a vault, or does
              the government spend it?  I guess my question is when
              there is a budget deficit, where does the government
              get the extra money?  Do they have some kind of reserve
              (federal reserve?) or need to make bond offerings
              (treasuries?)?
              \_ Don't confuse The Fed (a bank) with the Federal Government.
                 The federal government borrows money by issuing bonds. I
                 don't know how else to explain it. It is different than
                 just printing money because they promise to repay bonds.
                 A lot of the money used to finance US government deficit
                 spending comes from overseas investors.

                 \_ Is the Fed just like a regular bank?  Say, can I open a
                    savings or checking account at the Fed?
                 \_ Thanks, things are clearer now.  Are there no
                    connection at all between the the Fed and the Federal
                    Government?  There is never any money transfers
                    between the two entities?  Also, does the Fed only
                    lend out money?  Does it ever borrow money?
                    Where does it get all the money?  Is it in charge
                    of printing money?  It only lends to banks and
                    never directly to companies or individuals, right?
                    \_ This is way too much to answer in the motd.
                       http://www.federalreserve.gov/pf/pf.htm
                       \_ useful!
           \_ Is the link like, since the fed rate is so low, I have
              to put my money somewhere else, like bonds and stocks,
              so that causes bond rates to drop and stock market to
              go up.  Is that how the fed rate is supposed to affect
              the economy?
              \_ That is part of it. Another part is that since The Fed
                 is lending money at such a cheap rate to banks, they
                 are encouraged to lower their rates on things like
                 car and home mortgages. Since the money is so cheap
                 for the banks, they can lower their rates and still
                 make a profit. They can't lower them too far though,
                 since they are taking on the risk that rates will go
                 up in the future and they will be stuck with a crappy
                 rate.
                 \- um it's not possible to address all of the issues
                    in here except maybe give references. but quickly:
                    1. the treasury doesnt do much. they write the checks
                       but dont manage the money. they are a instrumental
                       player in fiscal policy. most of the churn in treasury
                       instruments is turn over in debt obligations [paying
                       off one matruing instruments and selling to someone
                       [mostly likely a bank] who wants to buy one. most of
                       the volume is not to fianance deficit spending.
                    2. the fed matters. they are the govt's bank and
                       the czar of the overall money supply/money base.
                       they are the main players in monetary policy.
                       the main way they control the money supply are
                       open markey operations run by the trading desk
                       at the new york fed. they can also affect money
                       supply by banking reg changes like reserve requirements
                       but that is really a sledgehammer and rately done.
                       the treasury also keeps money with the fed [the fed
                       has a hell of a lot more money at the ny fed than
                       fort knox ... probably something very few people knew
                       until whatever diehard movie that mentioned this].
                       a lot of money is created by fiat rather than
                       actually creating federal reserve notes or treasury
                       coins.
                     3. as in the above case about trade balance it is best to
                        start with accounting identities and defns to under-
                        stand the fundametnals. the govt can fiance a deficit
                        by raising taxes, selling assets or borowing from
                        private sources, foreign sources, or from the fed.
                        [note: raiting taxes != raising tax rates ... we
                        survive debt and deficits in part by GDP growth]
                                --psb
2003/7/31 [Finance/Investment] UID:29196 Activity:nil
7/31    Why are bond yields rising and bond prices dropping when the
        Fed interest rate is so low?
        \_ Bond yields are set by the market, not by governmnet fiat.
           Bond investors are demanding a higher yield right now, especially
           on long term bonds because of two things:
           1) inflation risk
           2) relative attractiveness of equities
2003/7/31 [Computer/HW/CPU] UID:29197 Activity:high
7/31    I just bought AMD2500+ (based on 1800Mhz) with FSB of 333Mhz and
        installed it on a MB that supports up to AMD3200. When I boot up the
        computer however, it says that I have AMD 1100Mhz. I tried playing
        with the BIOS, changing the FSB speed and all from 100Mhz to 200Mhz
        but the boot screen still says that I have AMD 1100Mhz. What is
        going on?
        \_ Your bios might be old, and not support the processor.  Try
           updating the bios. -- ilyas
           \_ turns out my MB has a switch between auto or manual 100 FSB.
              Forgot to turn it on. Thanks.
              \_ hello do any of you people use amd chips for heavy integer
                 crunching/sorting/searching? i have taken some quick and dirty
                 measurements of an operton box i have on loan and our
                 production Xeon system and it looks like an Nmhz opteron ~=
                 1.65-1.75 x N mhz Xeon ... anyone have other numbers to share?
                 any floating pt comparisons? my float-dept stuff has to be
                 heavily retooled for new processor so i wont have those number
                 for a while. thisis pretty small working set stuff.  ok tnx
                 \_ Learn to format to 80 cols with tab=8
                    \- oh my window may have been operating at a different
                       size at the time. ok tnx --psb
2003/7/31 [Politics/Domestic/California, Politics/Domestic/President/Bush] UID:29198 Activity:high
7/31    Poll, your hobbies:
        TV: .
        running for governor in CA: .
        \_ I know a guy that's running for fun.
          \_ how much to run for fun?
        vid game: ...
        bashing bush: ..
        defending Bush: .
        bike: .
        linux: .
        \_ that's not a hobby.  it's a sickness.
           \_ it's not a sickness.  it's just a second rate OS with good PR.
        golf:
        debauchery: .
        beer: .
        cooking:
        irritating tom holub: ...
        \_ fun but kind of easy so it doesn't take much time
        fighting the conservative republican corporate run media: .
        fighting the liberal media: .
        sex with partner(s): ..
        masturbation: ..
        fighting reverse racial discrimination: .
        \_ no such thing.  you're either discriminated against and denied
           jobs, housing, various benefits, etc, due to your race or you're
           not.  are = racial discrimination.  not = not.
2003/7/31 [Academia/Berkeley/CSUA/Troll/Kinney] UID:29199 Activity:nil 80%like:29183
7/30    Return of the Kinney teaser trailer: /csua/tmp/rotk.mov
2025/03/15 [General] UID:1000 Activity:popular
3/15    
Berkeley CSUA MOTD:2003:July:31 Thursday <Wednesday, Friday>