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As I understand, US law has fair use, and other legal systems have similar concepts. There are exceptions and limitations on copyrights, such as there are for most things under the law. I don't think that is in dispute. But isn't it usually the case that, when young children are concerned, you...

Isn't this about teaching the kids that using copyrighted material for any reason, in any way, at any time without proper permission from the owner of the rights to said material is wrong? I understand that is the gist of a copyright, and IP legislation in general. And respect for other people's...

I don't know about corporations writing school materials, but the information they give here might be good. In today's society, if you infringe on copyrights, you could land yourself in a lot of trouble. I'm not saying the current legislation on IP is the best or even particularly good, but it's...

On September 11th, The New York Times published an opinion piece by Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the article, Putin made his case to the American people on a way forward in Syria. On September 19th, Pravda.ru published an opinion piece by US Senator John McCain in response to the NYT...

I think how well the UN performs in humanitarian missions (disaster relief and such, missions without any form of military or economic sanctions component) depends on several different factors. One, the UN is required to operate with the consent and the co-operation of the host government. If...

Actually, I said (or at least meant) the exact opposite. Manufacture and storage of chemical weapons is not enough IMHO to incur culpability for their use. The use of chemical weapons would likely constitute a war crime, and if the leaders were held responsibile, it would likely be happen...

In a legal sense, wouldn't it be treated as a war crime? I imagine it becomes a question of command responsibility, and not necessarily one of manufacturing and storage.

But apparently the aliens would need to use something more substantial than chemical weapons.

Syria has a history of sponsoring Palestinian and Lebanese insurgents, and some other local flavor. This may be a degree different from a state where the extremists are in power. The reasons for the support have been mostly geopolitical; the Baathist government of Syria has come down hard on...

The rhetoric is about international treaties and moral outrage, true, but I suspect it serves to cover more pragmatic concerns. Some have voiced views that there may be domestic politics issues at play. My personal take is foreign policy, that the Obama administration backed themselves into a...

The difference is Interests at Stake. Why would the United States, or any other country for that matter, do anything and in the process piss off people unnecessarily if they don't have some sort of a dog in the fight? Even if you look at things from a moral perspective, the leaders have...

Isn't POTUS launching military strikes without congressional approval pretty much par the course, though? Seeking an OK from Congress might be a smart move on Obama's part. One of the few acceptable reasons that I can think of for launching the strikes is that similar 'red lines' have been...

Here are Kerry's remarks on the situation, delivered on Aug 30th. And here is a link to the unclassified version of the US government assessment on the incident: http://www.scribd.com/doc/164267522/08-30-2013-USG-Assessment-on-Syria-1

Obama talking about red lines does seem to have been an imprudent move. Now the options are either to intervene on behalf of a dictator who has always been an ally of Iran, or to intervene on behalf of jihadist rebels who also seem to have conducted chemical weapons attacks, or to do nothing and...

Hmm... needs a few tweaks, I don't think I'm very laissez-faire. But on the whole, might be fairly accurate.

A draft is good for establishing a sizeable reserve of moderately trained personnel. A professional/volunteer force can normally be trained to high levels. What I think it boils down to is what is most useful for the military defence of your country. If the security challenges you face call...

Very good, I'm glad you appreciate Bubble's contribution to these boards. And you are welcome to your opinion regarding mine.

Alright, I'll take a thread getting Bubble's to be a good thing, then. Regardless of the flak he's taken for voicing opinions in certain threads in the recent past.

Come on, what's wrong with a poster weighing in with an opinion. In my experience, Bubble's points tend to be thought out and clearly presented, and he usually sticks around to discuss the issue with anyone voicing a different view. I think discussion about topics is good, and something this...

I'm not really sure it is apt to draw that conclusion. I don't see much in either current US affairs or their historical record to indicate widespread tolerance towards their fellow man. In my view, much of the early appeal of the US, in terms of individual rights, rested upon their particular...