In my high school, we were required to take at least one year of a programming course, I didn't know this wasn't the norm.

I've been reading slashdot since about 2004ish, and back then it was my one stop news site for tech stuff.
However, now, I only read it as a joke, a reminder of what used to be.
The editors are a joke, most of the articles put up aren't newsworthy and/or are very poorly edited/summarized.
And this new beta page? Absolute shit.
We get it, the current owners of slashdot don't give a single fuck.

I seriously doubt you hear us, but we hear you loud and clear.
I have no doubt that this beta page will be the straw that broke the camel's back, and long time members will leave in droves.

Throw more money we don't have at the problem and maybe it'll go away.

As much as I do wish this would be the case, I don't think it's going to happen.
On the other hand, ten years ago I thought myspace would be around forever, and we all know how that turned out.

When i think back to my elementary school, there was only one reason to visit the library other than to check out books, and that was to play games on the computers.

We had games like SpellevatorMath Blaster as well as some adventure game that constantly quizzed various knowledges that I can't for the life of me remember the name of.
(I wish I did because I never beat it and I'd love to go back and do such now)

The point is, there's many an educational game out there, and it's an easy way to get younger kids learning things they may not otherwise take interest in.

My uncle would go off and rant and rave about how everyone was wearing these "gosh dang fangeled computers" on their wrists every time he saw me with my digital watch back in the 90s.
We didn't visit him much.

He didn't want anyone to know he was watching teletubbies. How embarrassing.

Metal Slug and Time Crisis were the two games I loved playing in arcades.

Remember back in high school where all the cool kids wanted alcohol because they were told they weren't allowed to have it?
It's the same thing. The US government is about to tell a bunch of nerds they can't have something, so they want it even more now.

This seems like a fairly broad statement. Despite what the horrible title says, people did NOT admit to "surfing the web" but "accessed the internet".
The only definition in this incredibly short article defining what that means is the following:

However, it doesn't say if they prefaced that when asking the question. If they simply asked me, for instance "Do you access the internet while you drive?", my answer would be "Yes, yes I do!"
Using google navigator, maps, etc? That access the internet. Even if it's sitting on my dash the entire time without me touching it, I am, indeed, accessing the internet while I drive.

I have a feeling that, gasp, this study was purposefully skewed for shock effect. And as per usual, slashdot took the bait.

Has there ever been an MMO where grinding wasn't a requirement?

This will only cause more needless deaths.
I don't even trust the TSA to scan for bombs properly, and now you want me to put GUNS in their hand?
This would make me feel incredibly unsafe, and I guarantee you it wouldn't be long before we hear of shootings started by these idiots.

And now with the updated number, so it's 1 in 50,000 odds of this hitting us, nearly 3,500 times more likely than a lottery win.