Europe Day

[HoreTore]

have we enforced democracy on belarus?

We support the democratic opposition with money and resources, yes.

[Husar]

Some people are always afraid of new technology.

I'm absolutely not afraid of new technology, I love new technology, but only if new means better.
It does actually happen that new turns out to be worse or not entirely thought through, and then it's perfectly reasonable to oppose it.

Flourescent light is complrtely superior to the old bulb. There is absolutely no advantage to the latter in regards to the former.

I just mentioned one, they emit poisonous gases. Nothing that will outright kill you and I haven't taken out mine, but I'm not very fond of things that kill me in the long run.
And they do take longer to turn on, I replaced the lightbulb in my bathroom with a CFL and it takes several minutes until it has reached it's full potential, at first the bathroom is still somewhat dark.
Plus, they die faster if you turn them on and off, the 10 years or however many hours it says on the package may be true if you never turn them off. I had to replace one lately that I bought maybe 3-5 years ago. That's not even half of the 10 years they advertise on the package and it was on a lamp that i hardly turned on in the last two years as well.
Not exactly what I would consider superior technology, all my hopes rest on LEDs now but so far they seem to cost 20€ and upwards if you want anything more than a decorative one that cannot light up an entire room and I had some problems finding ones that fit into my lamps, most of them have weird connectors.

This is one of the reasons why the EU is great: it can force through change in spite of the people who are afraid of new technology.

I generally agree, but this only works if the EU does think things through and considers all angles, if they just go on a hunch or a popular movement without thinking about the consequences then this can be really bad.

[gaelic cowboy]

Kewl, in a secret meeting the EUSSR decided that the Netherlands must give free money to Greece so they can stop working at 55. What was said we don't know as we weren't invited, we are too critical and the EUSSR does not accept doubt. Lalala CASH NOW. Another happy Europe day

Thats cos there really bailouts of the ECB forcing the taxpayers of Europe but North and South to bail it out in pursuit of mythical eurozone stability.

The ECB loves having all the attributes of a central bank but none of the messy things like actually running a proper single currency

[HoreTore]

Poisonous gases?

Hah! There are people who believe cell phones kill you too. I don't see why we should pay any attention whatsoever to such people.

[Rhyfelwyr]

Why do we feel we have the right to enforce democracy in Russia, where Putin has overwhelming support?

How dare we enforce rights and liberties upon those who would rather be slaves?!

Now you're just being silly. I am talking about people already living in a democracy. The EU can't just decide we are all going to have democracy at the European rather than the national level, any more than Serbia can just annex Kosovo and tell them not to complain because they are still part of a democracy.

[Husar]

Poisonous gases?

Hah! There are people who believe cell phones kill you too. I don't see why we should pay any attention whatsoever to such people.

There was a laboratory that tested it, not just random people who believe this for no reason, they also mentioned that one of the manufacturers wanted to look where those gases come from when they told them.
Concerning the rest, in the 70ies or so teachers here were expected to get x-rayed several times a year or so as part of regular health checks. By now it's known that x-rays are quite unhealthy if you get a whole lot of them, very similar to being subjected to radiation in fact. If everybody had had your attitude, who knows how many people would've died because of it?

I don't believe that cellphones can kill you, but they may cause some health problems in the long run, to claim that something that emits electromagnetic waves has no effect on anything other than another such communication device is quite absurd, just look at the connection to bees.

So basically I don't see why I should be forced to use something that is proven to emit carcinogenic gases in order to "save the environment".
And if I drop it and it breaks, I have to evacuate the area because it has heavy metals in it.
You know, I'm all for saving the environment, but not if it has a high chance of killing or hurting me.

[Furunculus]

HT is commited to flourescent bulbs because it is european, not because it makes sense, this much should be clear. all hail Robert Schuman

[Fragony]

Just admit it that you hate peace

[HoreTore]

HT is commited to flourescent bulbs because it is european, not because it makes sense, this much should be clear. all hail Robert Schuman

HoreTore's first job at the age of 17 was producing and installing flourescent and LED-lamps.

In other words, years before the EU thought about this.

[Furunculus]

interesting, i retract my previous statement............ and commit hari-kiri. :)

[gaelic cowboy]

HoreTore's first job at the age of 17 was producing and installing flourescent and LED-lamps.

In other words, years before the EU thought about this.

is there anything you havent done

[Tellos Athenaios]

Flourescent lamps? -- Never heard of those.
Or fluorescent? -- Seems more of a party trick.
Or halogen lamps? -- Those usually contain Chlorine. Normal lamps contain nitrogen gas by the way, so you wouldn't want to inhale that either.

[Greyblades]

Or halogen lamps? -- Those usually contain Chlorine. Normal lamps contain nitrogen gas by the way, so you wouldn't want to inhale that either.

The air is 70% nitrogen. Its harmless.

[Tellos Athenaios]

The air is 70% nitrogen. Its harmless.

Eh, no it isn't. The fact that air is a mixture of 20% oxygen with other gases that do not react nearly as readily as the oxygen is what makes the 70% nitrogen in it “harmless” (provided that you can breathe it out).

Either way in quantities contained in a lamp neither is very likely to have long lasting ill effects on you. The whole point: halogen lamps are every bit as safe as ordinary lamps.

[drone]

The whole point: halogen lamps are every bit as safe as ordinary lamps.

Apart from setting stuff on fire.

[HoreTore]

is there anything you havent done

For someone my age, I have a very diverse job experience. I grew up on a farm, and I've worked as a sysadmin, produced lamps, produced mattresses on an assembly line, installed electronics in cars, unloaded ships at the docks, delivered kitchens to building sites, cleaned building sites, packaged modems, sold bed-linens and worked at a gas station and a supermarket. I was also conscripted for a year.... I think that covers most of it. Now, I still work at a supermarket in addition to studying to be a teacher as well as working as one. And still, Frags refers to me as part of the "elite", those who have no contact with "ordinary people"....



Now please don't ruin it for me by asking me how long I stayed at those various jobs.....

[Fragony]

And still, Frags refers to me as part of the "elite", those who have no contact with "ordinary people"....

I do? You learn something new every day. Rabid leftie yes, elite no, those are the ones making money out of leftist hobby's. Working is not a leftist hobby.

[HoreTore]

I do? You learn something new every day. Rabid leftie yes, elite no, those are the ones making money out of leftist hobby's. Working is not a leftist hobby.

Well, you've grouped me with "people who live in 100% white neighborhoods" and such before, I thought that was a code-word for "elite"....

[Fragony]

Well, you've grouped me with "people who live in 100% white neighborhoods" and such before, I thought that was a code-word for "elite"....

Wasn't refering to you, we got a misunderstanding here

[HoreTore]

Wasn't refering to you, we got a misunderstanding here

Ah well, you know I love you nonetheless

[Fragony]

awwwwwwwwwwwwww

[Sarmatian]

Ah well, you know I love you nonetheless

awwwwwwwwwwwwww

Awwwww... so cute.

Here, have a video

[Tellos Athenaios]

Apart from setting stuff on fire.

Like lava lamps, you mean?

[Kralizec]

I just mentioned one, they emit poisonous gases. Nothing that will outright kill you and I haven't taken out mine, but I'm not very fond of things that kill me in the long run.

If you're thinking about mercury (quecksilber, not the planet or the Roman deity), there's so little of it in fluorescent lights that you'd have a more realistic chance of dieing by accidentally cutting yourself with the glass that contains it.
What I find odd though is that while lightbulbs were responsible for less than 1% of all electricity use, the EU decided to ban them for environmental reasons.

[Husar]

If you're thinking about mercury (quecksilber, not the planet or the Roman deity), there's so little of it in fluorescent lights that you'd have a more realistic chance of dieing by accidentally cutting yourself with the glass that contains it.

In that phrase I was referring to the gases the laboratory found that they apparently emit while they're turned on. Just too bad that I can't find an english link but there is also this nice video of a proud Texan talking about them.

[Subotan]

It's Eurovision Day!

[Louis VI the Fat]

It's Eurovision Day!

Yay!

Mindnumbing stupity, halogen lamps, and debates about issues no sane person understands such as common agricultural policy and currency / sovereign debt. It is all so beautiful in its cleverness.

Europe shall have peace forever. Peace as long as we can channel the energy of the amorphous masses towards these diversions, and divert the malcontent of the 'Angry Men' towards nonsense symbolic strife over flags and anthems and 0.42% of our budget.

One would want to re-instate grand ideology or religion for the same effect, but there's no consensus about which one, nor ought there to be any, because strife and competition is precisely Europe's strenght, it's dynamism. So what could be more clever than to maintain strife but divert unwanted offspill into gayfabulous infights about national contestants of a songfestival.

[gaelic cowboy]

Rewrite the bailout terms now or we revoke Jedwards citzenship stranding them on the continent forever mwah ha ha ha ha ha

[Louis VI the Fat]

Rewrite the bailout terms now or we revoke Jedwards citzenship stranding them on the continent forever mwah ha ha ha ha ha

Ah no. Now you made me Google that. Curse you!

I really would pay 86 billion just to be able to unsee this mess, unworthy of a universe with even the remotest chance of a living god or a single innocent soul.

[Skullheadhq]

I'am glad we lost, Volendam TROS scum.