Degeneration? Re: Where to now?
Okay, back to my discussion with myself ;-) This, of course, a tendency only. But it's sufficient and it surely kills innovation. I wonder how much further this tendency will go. I always found it hard to swallow when SciFi authors wrote about old degenerate races. Not only Dr. Brin; it also appeared in the Perry Rhodan pulp. I always wondered why there was no single brilliant, energetic, innovative member of this degenerate species who would turn the tide. Yup, that's naive. Probably read too many stories and/or watched too many movies where the hero would save the world/universe/everything, either singlehandely or with (or despite) the help of his/her idiotic sidekick. But now I wonder if we haven't already reached the goal of becoming a degenerate race. Progress mainly happens in marketing, not in research and development. And while we have a lot of hero material in our population, none of them is apparently able to make a difference. - Klaus ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
RE: Degeneration? Re: Where to now?
Ok - my take on it is that old, degenerate refers to the institutions of the culture, not the biology of the race, and that those institutions strangle the energy and desire to innovate of most bright people in the cradle. First of all, there would be widespread corruption, and probably absolutist government if there was government at all. Second, the rulers would have been strip-mining the economy from time immemorial, and the tech level would show it. Why innovate when anything you have can be taken from you because somebody wants it? Far better to focus on your own safety. Finally, there would be wdespread fatalism, probably backed up by popular religion - and believe me, it would be popular because it would offer an explanation of the way things were. Priesthoods preaching and enforcing this fatalism would be a bonus. Cultures like this have been known throughout history, and they often appear brilliant as long as there is anything to steal, and fall back into the pattern above when the loot runs out, so add in a sense of a bygone golden age that they are living in the ruins of. Is this not the description of these old and degenerate races so beloved of the writers you mention? Picked apart here with an eye to political science? Certainly it describes a lot of the ones so described by Western explorers in our own 17th-19th centuries. Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2012 15:17:58 +0100 From: k...@stock-consulting.com To: brin-l@mccmedia.com Subject: Degeneration? Re: Where to now? Okay, back to my discussion with myself ;-) This, of course, a tendency only. But it's sufficient and it surely kills innovation. I wonder how much further this tendency will go. I always found it hard to swallow when SciFi authors wrote about old degenerate races. Not only Dr. Brin; it also appeared in the Perry Rhodan pulp. I always wondered why there was no single brilliant, energetic, innovative member of this degenerate species who would turn the tide. Yup, that's naive. Probably read too many stories and/or watched too many movies where the hero would save the world/universe/everything, either singlehandely or with (or despite) the help of his/her idiotic sidekick. But now I wonder if we haven't already reached the goal of becoming a degenerate race. Progress mainly happens in marketing, not in research and development. And while we have a lot of hero material in our population, none of them is apparently able to make a difference. - Klaus ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Where to now?
On 11/20/2012 4:35 PM, Dan Minette wrote: BTW, my doctoral dissertation at the University of Michigan involved banking and monetary issues. One of the best lessons I learned was that people who really understand what they are talking about can say it it plain English. Well, that just makes you as suspect as the non-financial faculty of HBS :-) Don't you know that those who are educated in a subject are very suspect, just look at all the biologists who promegate that leftist propaganda: evolution. Actually, it's sad that folks like Mario Rubio have to bow to creationists by likened teaching anything that makes what's taught at home look foolish to Castro having kids spy on their parents. It doesn't make my ideas any better than anyone else's, I am quite aware. I got annoyed by Mr. Williams condescending attitude. Some of the biggest idiots I ever met had PhDs. When I was Faculty Development Officer I actually had a Physics prof seriously argue that since the software would calculate GPAs to 4 decimal places that we should submit grades accurate to 4 decimal places. The problem I have with a lot of what passes for economic commentary these days is that it is evidence-free. It is one thing to speculate before you have done the experiment, indeed it is almost mandatory to do so if you want to know where to experiment. But when the experiment has been done, repeatedly, and always gives the same result, acting as if none of that ever happened is just plain wrong. And I note that the Republicans are at it again with the nonsense that somehow cutting tax rates will increase revenue. That has been tried, repeatedly, and it just doesn't work that way. So at this point I can only conclude that the Republicans are congenital liars. On a more serious note. I don't know anyone who can explain electroweak theory in plain English and be accurate. I've tried for years to explain parts of QM as clearly and simply as possible, and find myself going over the heads of folks. It's frustrating. Yeah, that can be tough. As Feynman pointed out, the problem is that the universe is absurd, and we are not wired to work with absurdity. But economics is not that hard. Most of the difficulty comes from people who are trying to twist things to fit their interests. Offhand, I cannot imagine too many people who have a personal stake in how QM works. But tax policy affects everyone's wallet. Regards, -- Kevin B. O'Brien zwil...@zwilnik.com A damsel with a dulcimer in a vision once I saw. ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Where to now?
On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 7:12 AM, Kevin O'Brien zwil...@zwilnik.com wrote: So at this point I can only conclude that the Republicans are congenital liars. You are wearing selective blinders. All politicians are liars. ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Where to now?
So at this point I can only conclude that the Republicans are congenital liars. You are wearing selective blinders. All politicians are liars. But not all are congenital. Luckily, most voters do not care if the lies are plausible or at least delivered convincingly. - Klaus ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Where to now?
On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 9:30 AM, Klaus Stock k...@stock-consulting.com wrote: So at this point I can only conclude that the Republicans are congenital liars. You are wearing selective blinders. All politicians are liars. But not all are congenital. Ha! Luckily, most voters do not care if the lies are plausible or at least delivered convincingly. I'm would not say it is lucky, but in my observation the most effective lies are the ones where the politicians tell people exactly what they want to hear. Plausibility is not so important. ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Politicians
On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 Kevin O'Brien zwil...@zwilnik.com wrote: So at this point I can only conclude that the Republicans are congenital liars. You are wearing selective blinders. All politicians are liars. But not all are congenital. Luckily, most voters do not care if the lies are plausible or at least delivered convincingly. - Klaus From: John Williams jwilliams4...@gmail.com Luckily, most voters do not care if the lies are plausible or at least delivered convincingly. I'm would not say it is lucky, but in my observation the most effective lies are the ones where the politicians tell people what they want to hear. Plausibility is not so important. It is in my observation, as a politician, that MOST politicians are liars, and they tailor their promises for a target audience who will believe their rhetoric. I am not a liar, but that is probably why I have lost the 12 times I have run for office!~) Jonathan Mann ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
Re: Brin-l Digest, Vol 42, Issue 16
On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 11:00 AM, Klaus Stock k...@stock-consulting.com wrote: snip But now I wonder if we haven't already reached the goal of becoming a degenerate race. Progress mainly happens in marketing, not in research and development. And while we have a lot of hero material in our population, none of them is apparently able to make a difference. Would you be interested in being a hero? I can supply the program, but it's beyond me to lead it. To old for one thing. In short, we build one power satellite the hard way with conventional rockets or rocket planes. The first one is used for laser propulsion, and that drops the price of lifting parts to GEO so far that burning fossil fuel is more expensive than power from space. Presumable, that ends the use of fossil fuels. If your are not interested do you know anyone who is? Keith http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L5_Society ___ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
