If the time it takes to generate the content and verify that content is shorter than the time it would take to create the content yourself.

I take your point - It might be a waste of time in cases where the above is not true, but in my experience it has often been time saving.

Yes - I agree.

It's much more complex than just "left" and "right". And the definitions of "left" and "right" are not well defined, and changing.

I suppose the well intentioned folk at Ground News are just trying to offer a bit more meta-information to give news-readers better context on their news sources.

In my opinion, all that complexity and lack of clarity and consensus doesn't make it worthless. I can agree with them in broad strokes that Fox News is on the right, and dissidentvoice.org is on the left. I can agree with them that the BBC is comparitively more in the centre. I can also look into their methodology for rating bias and generally agree (while possibly disagreeing with minor points). And importantly, when the bias rating is disputed I can take that into account with the appropriate weighting. e.g. If Fox News calls the BBC a far left organisation, I might take that with a grain of salt - They would say that. But if the criticism came from a more centrist source I might give the criticism more weight.

In summary, I think this sort of bias rating information can be helpful, if used appropriately. But the way I would use it is not to fill my blindspots on the far left or far right, but more to ensure I know which sources aim to avoid bias.

The fast food of information.

Actually there are a number of Americans (and nationals from other countries) who have settled in Japan, and would find it difficult to go back and live in their country of origin.

The aspects of Japan they like often include the following:

• The freedom: Japan has a marvellous public transport system, which gives you choice. You can drive a car, but you can also get there efficiently by train. The trains are comfortable, clean, fast, they free you from ahving to focus on driving, and you can have a beer before heading home.
• The people-centric urban design: Even in large cities, you can walk if you want, and are not faced with having to cross multilane roads. You don't constantly have to watch for danger.
• The healthcare: This has been discussed on Slashdot before. I won't labour the point. But suffice it to say, people in Japan are a lot less anxious about receiving the healthcare they need.
• The earnestness: Culturally, people take their jobs seriously - It's considered cool to do so. The gas stations are like that scene in Back to the Future. Waiters are not doing a half-heated job because they are really actors between work.
• The functionality: Things work properly. If you get someone in do some repairs in your home, for example, you can bet they'll do an excellent job, remove their shoes and lay down sheets to protect the floor, and be extremely polite throughout the process.
• The cuisine: Japan is one of those countries that is careful and respectful about food. Even the cheap restaurants are of a high quality. The high fat sugary food common in western countries tends to become less appealing the longer you spend in Japan. And generally speaking a life in Japan means much less struggling with your weight.
• The beauty: Normal towns, city streets, day to day scenes, just look better - aside from the exotic appeal that any foreign scene might have.

Living in a country like Japan also has the effect of challenging your own norms and assumptions - Opening your mind, if you will.

Japan has historically been pretty isolated. Nationality is determined Jus sanguinis (by blood) rather than jus soli (by place of birth). Culturally a foreigner that takes Japanese citizenship is not considered the same as a Japanese person with Japanese ancestry.

Foreigners in Japan are, by default, thought of as visitors - who will eventually return.

I don't think it's a lack of kindness as such, it's just a cultural norm that is an outcome from Japanese history.

Those American "investors" were probably gambling rather than investing.

I quite liked the days when, generally speaking, guidelines outnumbered rules, and the whole employee-company relationship was less brittle.

I understand that clear rules with clear consequences avoid misunderstandings. But this is more necessary with children than it is between gentlemen, as it were. What's changed...?

In America there is a cultural aversion to shared assets. There's a preference to have one of your own - outdoor areas included. That's why people can't help but see apartment living as a downgrade from a detatched house with a garden.

I fear you may be right. We may be in an era when people unashamedly only vote for their own immediate interests.
It's how people are when they constantly feel at the end of their tether.

Slashdot does pretty well at avoiding what one would normally label "Big Tech" in its implementation.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Slashdot is built on something like the following hierarchy:
- HTML / CSS / JavaScript (Front end)
- Perl (Back end)
- MySQL (DB)
- Apache / mod_perl (Web server)
- Linux (OS)
- TCP/IP, HTTP

For people who are irked by the idea of being assigned a number, this sort of thing doesn't appeal.

But there's a balance between this drawback, and the convenience and efficiency it introduces. "Immigration crisis" aside, a single card which can be used for taxation, dirvers license, passport, and general identification does have a lot of advantages - both for the authorities and the individuals.

Japan has recently introduced a "My Number" card. It's not necessarily a model to be replicated - there's room for improvement, but it's an interesting case study. It's a card with a chip. You can use your phone with it, but to log in on your phone requires a step where you physically rest the phone on the card. You can link your passport and drivers license (or keep them unlinked if you want). It makes a lot of government admin go more smoothly. It's not compulsory, but I imagine the alternatives will be phased out in the future.

It's the way it would have been implemented initially had that been feasible at the time.

I think his ideology is that anyone in that scenario worth their salt will be able to sit down each evening and drink a cold beer after a hard day's ownership.

A university like Harvard represents much of what triggers his insecurities. He wouldn't be admitted to that sort of club himself, and he is unable to debate with the sort of intellectual clout they wield. He would feel a lot better if they were struck down.