It's the economy ...

[Xugumad]

Originally posted by dhamsaic
Sigh.

There should be limits to freedom. It <b>should</b> be illegal for me to kill you, and it is.

I don't see how someone's livelihood (at best) was ruined here. Please explain that.

Sure, no problem: let's say I'm a money trader, working on the stock exchange or for some other brokerage firm. In fact, in real life I briefly contemplated doing that.

I do my homework. Bush is coming to visit. He says in advance he's not going to comment on the currently very weakened Japanese economy. Excellent. I suspect that he will sign trade agreements and utter pleasant yet meaningless noises about more Sino-American cooperation, which in turn will strengthen the Japanese economy, and potentially the currency as well. I buy $5million in Yen, ready to short sell at the end of the day.

Bush turns up. Bush comments on the forthcoming 'devaluation'. The Yen drops. My brokerage firm is stuck with short term losses, and I get fired, my place snapped up by one of the thousands of brokers the economy produces every month.

It's that simple: people's livelihoods can depend on reading politics; if someonebody makes a 'boo boo', they can get fired. I don't feel particularly *sorry* for brokers and traders, as their job isn't exactly the most productive in the world, but some of them certainly lost their jobs over that. It's a cutthroat business, but it wasn't their fault.

About how someone's stupidity can kill people: let's assume there was academic research going on right now that could save many people's lives. Let's say the administration restricted and stopped that research, for reasons either unexplained or vaguely hinted at. Or let's say the administration prohibited academic discussion of the research, locking it away?
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/17/politics/17SECR.html

About the limits of freedom: George W. Bush made that comment regarding a GW Bush parody website. He filed a legal complaint against a website, using the above citation.
Source: http://www.gwbush.com/pressdallasnews.htm
http://www.rtmark.com/more/limits_to_freedom.mp3

Still care to employ hyperbole and talk about killing people?

X.