I personally know people who've madee it through security and on to a plane with, of all things, a box cutter. If I wanted to, I could easily get on board with weapons.
What I found when preparing to travel recently is that you may not have an aftermarket gel filled insole in your shoe, however, a gel or water bra is just fine.
Like many of these precautions or restrictions, all it does is inconvenience law abiding citizens.
97% of respondents state that if they get a letter giving them a choice to stop sharing or lose their internet service stated that they would change ISPs due to an "invasion of privacy".
I know people that have gotten such letters at the behest of movie studios. The solution, take down the offending share and then search for a new ISP.
I know people who download music and movies. Many of them do it in lieu of renting to determine if they want to buy it. Interestingly enough, had they rented it, the studios do not get any money from that either. So what is the difference?
Let me start by saying, I am from Washington state, where it is a class c felony to gamble online, except off-track betting. Interestingly enough, the definition that is given to what constitutes gabling is "a game of chance".
Let's look at a few activities mentioned.
Lottery - Game of chance. There is no reliable method fo improving your odds. Counting number of times a number hits (or doesn't) and the overall frequency is the same stategy used by roulette players.
Horse Racing - Game of chance tempered with a bit of knowledge. You can help yourself by looking at the horse (and jockey) overall performance, buut there are too many unknowns to dismiss it as chance.
Stock Market - A bit of both. If you are connected to the right data and you are able to predict certain precursors that will create an upswing, then you have an edge. However, you will not always be right.
Poker - I would estimate about a 60/40 skill/luck split. There is quite a bit of skill in playing poker. Forget what you see on TV, as that is maybe a tenth of the actual hands played. There is psychology and math (including statistics and probability) involved to be a successful poker player. Sure, there is luck. Unfortunately, that is a lot of what people see on TV. They see the suck-outs, the monster flops, etc. What they don't see is the building a reputation to allow the players to push people off pots or make hugely successful bluffs.
One that wasn't mentioned was Blackjack.
Blackjack, if played right (without counting cards) is a game of chance. Slightly in the favor of the house I might add. But, even then it is not a game of chance purely.
On the post: Security Theater In Action
It is just a show.
What I found when preparing to travel recently is that you may not have an aftermarket gel filled insole in your shoe, however, a gel or water bra is just fine.
Like many of these precautions or restrictions, all it does is inconvenience law abiding citizens.
On the post: Useless Studies: Given The Choice Of No File Sharing Or No Internet, Guess What People Choose?
Breaking news...
I know people that have gotten such letters at the behest of movie studios. The solution, take down the offending share and then search for a new ISP.
I know people who download music and movies. Many of them do it in lieu of renting to determine if they want to buy it. Interestingly enough, had they rented it, the studios do not get any money from that either. So what is the difference?
On the post: Congress Too Busy Gambling With Your Money To Let You Gamble With It Yourself
Chance vs Skill
Let's look at a few activities mentioned.
Lottery - Game of chance. There is no reliable method fo improving your odds. Counting number of times a number hits (or doesn't) and the overall frequency is the same stategy used by roulette players.
Horse Racing - Game of chance tempered with a bit of knowledge. You can help yourself by looking at the horse (and jockey) overall performance, buut there are too many unknowns to dismiss it as chance.
Stock Market - A bit of both. If you are connected to the right data and you are able to predict certain precursors that will create an upswing, then you have an edge. However, you will not always be right.
Poker - I would estimate about a 60/40 skill/luck split. There is quite a bit of skill in playing poker. Forget what you see on TV, as that is maybe a tenth of the actual hands played. There is psychology and math (including statistics and probability) involved to be a successful poker player. Sure, there is luck. Unfortunately, that is a lot of what people see on TV. They see the suck-outs, the monster flops, etc. What they don't see is the building a reputation to allow the players to push people off pots or make hugely successful bluffs.
One that wasn't mentioned was Blackjack.
Blackjack, if played right (without counting cards) is a game of chance. Slightly in the favor of the house I might add. But, even then it is not a game of chance purely.
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