The Current Events Thread

[BurntToShreds]

I dislike how western culture essentially ducks down in fear and gives in as a result of scare tactics by radical Islamic groups. Case-in-point, the whole debacle with South Park and the Prophet Muhammed. Comedy Central gave in and censored a large portion of the 200th and 201st episodes of South Park, which had much to deal with the Prophet Muhammad and his untouchability in regards to his image and poking fun at him compared to other religious figures. I still do not believe that this was some manner of ploy by Matt Stone and Trey Parker. Giving in to these kinds of demands by radical groups just proves that, if you'll pardon the cliche phrase, "The terrorists win." What do you think about these scare tactics and the way that they have gained ground?

[Syobon]

They are infringing on the MY GOD-GIVEN RIGHT TO SAY WHATEVER THE FUCK I WANT AND DISREGARD ALL CONSEQUENCES TO WHAT I SAY. It's indeed sad that the west does not take a stand of this, and does not condemn religious fanatics more for their persecutions.

e: Related: 8000-year old stone carvings destroyed by Islamic extremists

[BurntToShreds]

That's wrong and unforgivable on so many levels.

[D-vid]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/onpolitic ... h/1643465/

We should have a "Shit Republicans say" Thread.

Edit:
And something I just saw Great Handsome Oppressor retweeted, but since he didn't post it here I will:

Free Education baaad

[Madican]

So what's this I hear about the French president trying to ban homework?

[Shad]

That's not it at all. He said it would be nice for kids to be able to do homework at school after classes ended, if possible and if they wanted to.

[BurntToShreds]

At what time do you think that electric cars will be truly feasible both in their cost to the average person and in their efficiency?

[D-vid]

Depends on just one thing:
How much pressure the oil businesses are going to make on politicians to not help make them efficient.
Hint:The answer is a lot

[Lambeth]

yeah basically. If the cheddar that went to oil companies went to electric car makers instead I'm pretty sure we'd all be puttering around in electric cars.

[Wry Bread]

That's not it at all. He said it would be nice for kids to be able to do homework at school after classes ended, if possible and if they wanted to.

That would have helped a kid like me a lot. I'm awful at homework, I absolutely can't focus at home on stuff like that unless I'm totally alone, and even then it's like chewing on cinder blocks. I'd have loved the opportunity to stay in a controlled environment like school and get some of my harder work done without having to worry about distractions or chores for a while.

[Brekkjern]

At what time do you think that electric cars will be truly feasible both in their cost to the average person and in their efficiency?

You have to define efficiency here. If you mean energy per mile, then they are plenty efficient. Do you mean range, as in battery power? Tesla have been making cars with a range of 300 miles/ 482 km if you drive in 55 mph/ 88km/h. I guess that just leaves charging which I couldn't find any data on, but a guesstimate from their charger specs of 10 kW and 20 kw would put the charging time at 8/4 hours respectively. I guess that would put a downer on a cross country drive, but it is still great performance.

[Kamak]

I know there were plans to make it where you could charge the battery of an electric car with solar panels or even the roads themselves if they were outfitted with a way to transfer electricity to the car (like the glass roads that were posted in the science thread).

That would definitely extend the charge, but the constant charging might degrade the battery.

[Brekkjern]

That depends on the battery type, but I don't believe the roads would output enough energy to actually charge the vehicle. Rather just reduce the discharge of the battery.

I have heard talks about adding charging pads at traffic lights because cars generally stand still there, but since the cars have such a long range, that won't really help. The problem is when you drive outside of the city. It's the distance that discharges the battery. Not the city driving. Besides, when you park, you can just plug it in.

[Syobon]

Keep in mind the cost too, you greatly increase efficiency and range by using high-tech lightweight materials and such, but the cost will increase exponentially.
What a lot of people tend to forget is that switching to electric cars won't do us any good unless we make work of clean electric energy.

[DarkSurfer]

Not to mention having to retrofit all roads to electric ones, or just adapting them in, is a major time and cheddar consuming task that would take years. Not to mention construction charge stations all over the world like gas stations are. Plus, its not like everyone will just change overnight. A lot of people wouldn't be able to afford it anyway, electric cars aren't cheap.